My Son
by TawnyShyrell
Summary: Tim is struck with tragedy and his team rallys to support him. However, when Mike Franks shows up, will Tim's past put the entire team in danger or will he sacrifice everything to protect them. Papa Gibbs. Story complete, post a chapter a day.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N:** I had this story bouncing around in my head long before Mike was killed. Since he plays a pretty big part, I wanted him to still able to kick-ass. So, this takes place sometime in season six. I think I have kept all the references correct, but if there are any glaring faux pas, then please bring it to my attention and I will try to adjust.

Also, even though there is some foul language, no f-bombs are dropped, so I'm not categorizing this as a 'mature' story. Although, this is your warning - if bad language offends you, then please do not read. The story is not inundated, but it is in there where I think people talking would throw their swear words.

The usual disclaimers apply: I own nothing, not making any money, just having some fun.

Okay, I'm done babbling. On with the story!

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><p>The sun made its way lazily across the sky, coloring the water below as it beat across a sandy beach. In a small, sleepy cantina with few patrons, the ringing of a phone broke the quiet atmosphere.<p>

"Buenas tardes." The pretty bar maid cheerfully answered. "Si." She stretched her arm out to one of the men sitting at the bar. "It is for you Señor Mike."

Mike Franks took another puff of his cigarette before taking the phone. "Yeah? - - Hal, it's been a long time. Why are you ... "

He paused as the man on the phone talked.

"Goddamn it! How could you have dropped the ball like ... - - Alright, alright, has the family been ... - - What! - - Jesus, what about the kid? - - I'm on my way." Mike hung up and rubbed his hand across his face.

"Señor Mike?" The bar maid asked in concern.

He looked at her but took long drag before answering. "Of all the reasons that I ever thought I would get called back to the states, this was never one of them."

"Something bad?"

"Worse than bad." Mike downed his drink and threw money on the bar. As he left, he shook his head. _Damn incompetent sons-of-bitches! I hope the kid is up for a reunion._

Mike was on the phone making flight arrangements as he packed. He made sure Leyla had what she needed to take care of herself and Amina. As he closed the front door, he realized it had only been an hour since he got the call from Hal. _I wonder how long the nightmare is going to last this time?_

While driving to the airport, he though back to many, many years ago to a case that change a lot of lives.

XXXX

On the eastern side of the United States, Tony DiNozzo was having anything but a good day. He had a flat tire that morning and was late to work, well, later than usual. He missed the elevator and had to take the stairs, snagged and tore his jacket along the way. He spilled his coffee all over his desk and his pants (thank goodness he keeps a spare everything on hand). Not only did he get a death glare from Gibbs (plus several head-slaps) and Ziva, but McGee ...

Well, McGee hadn't been acting himself today, in fact, he hadn't been since this case started. It was late on Friday when the call came in about a dead Gunny, left hanging upside down with his throat slit in front of his CO's office.

They all knew McGee was planning to go out of town to join his family in celebration of Sarah getting her first work published. Tim had been beaming all week with pride for his baby sister. He was supposed to leave Friday right after work, but had to cancel when the Gunny came up dead.

At first, Tim took it pretty well, hoping the team would wrap up the case quickly and he could be on his way. It wasn't until Monday that his attitude took a nose dive. He stopped responding to jokes and would only speak when spoken to. Anytime Tony or Ziva asked what was wrong, he would just respond with 'Nothing' or 'It's not work related'. Everyone chalked it up to just being frustrated that the case was dragging.

By Tuesday, everyone could tell it was more. It appeared that Tim hadn't gone home, since he was in the same suite from Monday, he was barely eating and jumped every time his work or cell phone rang. He even snapped at Gibbs, when the Boss tried to insist on everyone going home for the night. McGee barked back the he wasn't going anywhere until the case was done and to stop interrupting him. It was such a shock to everyone that they all froze for a moment. When Gibbs tried to approach him, McGee shot around him and left for the break room, muttering 'Never mind' as he strode away.

Tony sighed and took a brief glance at his young partner. _I wonder if Gibbs really gave it to him because he looks worse than yesterday._ He looked at his computer. _1923, god! Is this day ever going to end ... is this case?_

The case had stalled. Everyone absolutely loved Gunnery Sergeant Heath Lonsert, he had no enemies. However, none of the team believed that, everyone had enemies, especially if you were in law enforcement or military. But whoever had done this had cover their tracks well: everyone had an alibi; no recent confrontations; no odd financial transactions from anyone in the Gunny's recent history. McGee had decided to start going back as far as he could with anyone who had ever crossed paths with Lonsert from elementary school until present, which had quickly turned into a daunting task.

Tony looked back at his list. He had been given the time frame from Lonsert's recruitment to his promotion to Lance Corporal. That list alone was six or seven pages ... of small print. He put his list down and looked around to the team, each with their own lists. He took a deep breath to suggest a different approach when McGee's desk phone rang.

McGee practically dove for it, even though it was only an arms length away. "Hello, Agent McGee. - - Yes, Officer I have ... - - Ar-are you sure? - - Yeah. - - Yeah." He hung up the phone, although it was more of a dropping than an actual motion, and then he just sat there, a look of complete and utter shock on his face.

Tony took a quick look to Ziva, then to Gibbs, then back to McGee completely unsure about what to do.

Gibbs looked up when McGee dove for the phone, hoping it was a break on the case. When he stuttered, it was more the sound of his voice more than the words that got Gibbs gut churning, he sounded lost. When McGee let the phone fall back into it's cradle the look on his face was more than just shock, it was as though his whole world had just crumbled.

That made Gibbs gut twist even more. He knew there was only one thing that could put that look on someone's face. He would recognize it anywhere, since he had seen it in the mirror for a very long time after the first time he awoke from a coma.

He got up and walked to McGee, deliberately keeping himself where Tim could see him. "McGee?" No response. He was standing over his agent, which always produced a response, but this time nothing. "McGee?"

Still no reaction, he wasn't even sure Tim was breathing. Gibbs knit his brows in concern. He reached out and place a hand on McGee's shoulder. That seemed to snap him back to the here and now. He shot up and pushed past Gibbs, knocking the team leader off balance.

"McGee! Wait!" Gibbs scrambled to right himself and catch up to his man. There was no anger about Tim's actions, just concern.

Tim made it to the external elevators before collapsing against the wall, his shoulder the only thing keeping him upright.


	2. Chapter 2

Thank you to everyone who has alerted and/or reviewed. I am very excited to see what you guys think of this one.

You know the drill: I own nothing of NCIS.

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><p>At the same time McGee was receiving his call, Director Leon Vance was getting one of his own.<p>

~"Director, you have a call from the LA office."~

"Thank you, Pamela, please put it through." He drew in a breath and let it out slowly while the call connected. "Hetty, what do you have for me. - - Damn. The LEO's sure? - - Of course. - - Please send them to us. - - I know, but I'm sure it will be better for him in the long run. - - I will and thank you for keeping me informed."

Leon sat back and took a moment to gather his thoughts. _I hate this part of the job. I guess that's why we have specialist that usually do this._ He stood, straighten his jacket and headed out. When he reached the Mezzanine Level he was able to catch the tail-end of McGee's call. He watched the team's reaction. _He hasn't told any of them yet, well shit._

Vance sighed, and walked down the stairs. He reached McGee at the elevators the same time Gibbs did, with Tony and Ziva hovering nearby. "Agent McGee."

Gibbs gave him a death glare, while Tim turned around slowly, as if he were fighting his way through cement. He didn't address Vance in any way, he just looked at him.

Vance took a step closer to McGee, reached out and gently squeeze his elbow. "I'm sorry for your losses."

Tony and Ziva looked at each other confused and then to Gibbs. Gibbs was standing still, waiting for all the information, feeling terrible that his gut was never wrong.

"T-Thank you, Director."

Vance let go of McGee's arm and gave a small encouraging smile. "I want you to know that I will be personally making all the arrangements."

"Sir?"

"I figured you would want them here."

"Well, yeah ... but, he's retired ... and ..."

"It's alright, we've done retired before. Right Gibbs." Vance looked at Gibbs willing him to understand.

Gibbs understood and hated it; hated that he knew, hated that he had missed what Tim's attitude all week had really been about, hated that someone he cared about was going through so much pain. "Tim, what's going on?"

Now, it was Vance's turn to give a death glare. He looked at Gibbs wondering how such a good investigator could be so dense, when he realize the look on Gibbs face, compassion. Then he understood, Gibbs knew. He wanted McGee to say it out loud, to confront it head-on. Vance looked back at McGee, who was focusing only on him. He gave Tim an encouraging nod.

Tim slowly took his eyes from Vance to focus on Gibbs. "Boss, I ..." He couldn't say it, he didn't want to say it.

Gibbs just stared at him. He wasn't going to budge, and Tim knew it, he swallowed hard and took a couple of false starts before he could actually get the words to come out.

"My ... my family ..." It was as if the words were physical blows as McGee slowly sunk to his knees putting his arms out to keep himself from falling all the way to the floor. "My family ..." He closed his eyes, his arm shaking with effort.

Gibbs followed Tim down, sitting on his haunches, waiting for him to finish.

"Gone. Their gone." He raised his head and opened his eyes, finally locking firmly onto Gibbs ice blue eyes. "My family is gone. Someone killed my family. I ..."He couldn't continue the grief knocking out any reserves and McGee fell forward.

He would have landed on his face, but Gibbs leaned in and caught him. Tim's forehead rested on Gibbs shoulder and he was breathing hard trying to keep control of himself.

Behind Gibbs, Ziva had placed a hand on her mouth in shock. Tony looked from the two figures on the floor to the Director. "You're wrong." He looked back to his teammates. "It's a mistake."

"I wish it were Agent DiNozzo." Vance said in a gentle voice.

Tony looked up to protest, but Vance gave a small shake to his head. The details could wait until McGee was out of earshot.

Gibbs had started to stroke Tim's head, just like he used to do when his daughter was upset. "It's alright Tim, we'll get through this together, as a team. You're not alone. We're here, Tim. _**I'm**_ here." He spoke in his most soothing tone, something not many had ever heard from him. He waited until Tim stopped shaking. "You ready to try to stand?"

No response. "Okay, buddy, here we go." Gibbs pushed McGee back just enough so that he could stand, pulling Tim with him. McGee didn't resist, but he didn't help either.

Once McGee was stable on his feet, Gibbs turned around to the rest of them, keeping a grip on Tim's arm. "I'm calling it a night. DiNozzo, you and David get everything we have on Lonsert and have it ready to hand over to another team." He gave a hard look to Vance then to his team. All three understood, they were to be brought up to speed once Gibbs got Tim out of there.

Ziva took a step forward, wanting to comfort her friend. Gibbs locked eyes with her and shook his head, she stopped and dropped her eyes. Gibbs was telling her there was nothing she could do, that hurt and made her angry at the same time.

Gibbs gave a squeeze to McGee's arm. "Let's go Tim." His eyes were lost and unfocused, he still made no response. Gibbs understood and just guided him to the elevator. He never lost contact, wanting to make sure McGee knew on some level, that someone was there watching out for him.

Tony waited for the elevator to engage before he rounded on Vance. "What the hell is going on? Why do you know about it and we don't?"

Vance sighed. He gestured for them to walk back into the bull-pen. He leaned against the corner of DiNozzo's desk. "I found out by accident. Take a seat."

"I think I would rather stand right now."

"As would I, Director."

Vance shrugged. "You know that McGee was supposed to leave on Friday to meet his family, right?"

Ziva nodded. "Yes, he was as happy as a sparrow about his sister getting published."

"Lark, Ziva, it's lark." Tony huffed.

"They are both birds, what does it matter."

"Ah ... never mind."

Vance smirked at the exchange, wondering if Ziva did it on purpose to relieve some of the tension in the air. "Yes. Well, they were all going to Sarah's favorite resort. They were supposed to check in Saturday, they never did. The hotel called McGee on Sunday."

"That's why he was so uptight on Monday, he must have been worried sick."

Vance nodded. "Monday night, he called the LAPD, asking for official help in searching for his family. The LEO's always check with Hetty, to make sure those kind of requests are legitimate."

"She called you." Ziva filled in.

Vance nodded again. "I asked her to keep me informed. She must have called me the same time the LAPD called McGee."

"What did they find?" Tony glanced at Ziva, worried about the answer.

"The car was over a cliff."

"An accident?"

This time Leon shook his head at Ziva. "They found the bodies laid out right next to it, shot execution style."

"All three?" Tony prodded.

"Unfortunately yes. One man, two women. All matching the descriptions of the McGee's, their IDs were found in the car and preliminary DNA testing is a match."

"Preliminary? So it could be ..."

"No DiNozzo. It's only preliminary because I told them we would take over the investigation. Their bodies are being shipped here."

Tony clenched his fists and his jaw as he digested the information. He was brought out of his thoughts by Ziva cursing in Hebrew.

"What is it Officer David?"

"He should be under protective custody."

"Who?" Tony asked.

"McGee!"

"Wha ... Why?"

"For an investigator, you are very brick headed."

Both men let that one slide.

"Since the suspect went after the entire family, he could know that McGee was supposed to be with them. McGee might have been the original target and his family was collateral damage."

Tony just stared at her as the truth of her words sunk in. They might have ended up with four bodies instead of three. He turned back to the Director. "Is that true?"

"It could be. We don't know much of anything yet." He paused and looked at Ziva. "As for protective custody, I think Gibbs will have that covered."

This time, Ziva nodded to Vance. She knew that Gibbs' was probably the safest place for McGee.

Tony, trying make sense of everything, said the first thing that came to mind. "Man, what a way to have something in common with the Boss."

Vance met DiNozzo's gaze. "What do you mean?"

"Well, I lost my mom, Abby her parents, Ziva her siblings. But to have your entire family wiped out in one fell swoop ..."

"Yes, only Gibbs knows what that is like." Ziva responded quietly.

"Well, then, it is doubly good McGee is with him then." Vance stated as he rubbed the bridge of his nose. "You two, do what Gibbs ordered and hand the case over to Agent Brooks' team and then go home."

"What are you going to do Director?"

"Make a lot of phone calls, Officer David." Vance gave them a weary smile then headed back to his office.

Tony and Ziva stood there for a moment and then quietly went to work. It took them about fifteen minutes to finish and leave everything on Brooks' desk. They left and went their separate ways, neither saying a word to each other.

XXXX

Gibbs talked all the way to his house. Not about anything important, but just something to keep a constant familiar voice going. When he pulled up, McGee made no move to get out of the car. Gibbs knew if he let him, Tim would stay there all night. He was in shock and had shut down, something Gibbs knew well.

He went to the passenger side of the car, opened the door and pulled McGee out. Tim wasn't resisting anything Gibbs did. He smiled slightly as they entered the house. _I could probably get him aboard a ship and it'd be the first time he wouldn't be sea sick._

He guided Tim to the kitchen and sat him down in a chair. He fixed a simple dinner, a Bologna sandwich, and placed it in front of McGee.

Tim didn't move a muscle.

Gibbs placed a hand on his shoulder and leaned down, placing his mouth ear level. "Tim, eat." It was a soft command, but a command none the less and Tim did has he was told.

Gibbs stood back and watched. He knew exactly what McGee was going through. Making him say the words was the first step.

Now was the withdraw, Tim was emotionally overloaded and needed to shut down for a while to cope. Gibbs wished he would have had someone around _**him**_ during this time, it was hard to remember to breath, let alone all of the other functions needed for life. Since he didn't have it, he was damn sure going to make sure Tim did.

Soon would come the emotions, the tears, the despair, the anger. It was the last emotion that Gibbs was counting on. Anger would push McGee to focus on finding the criminal who did this to his family. It was also the emotion that he had to most watch out for, the last thing he wanted was Tim to turn into a carbon copy of him. That thought brought a small smile to Gibbs. _Who would have ever thought I'd be worried about Tim being too much like me._ He shook his head at himself.

Tim finished the sandwich and sat there, not aware of anything. Gibbs took the plate and placed a glass of ice tea laced with bourbon. The tea was to wash down the food, the bourbon was for sleep. "Drink." Again, Tim did as he was told.

Gibbs let him sit there while he washed the dishes, again talking all the while, although he was watching Tim, waiting for the bourbon to take affect. When he saw Tim listing to one side, he walked over and caught his arm. "Bedtime."

Tim got up and walked with Gibbs upstairs. He was worried about leaving Tim alone for any amount of time, but decided he would chance it with the bathroom. He leaned McGee against the door frame while he got out a new toothbrush and placed it on the sink. "I always have back up." Gibbs smiled at McGee, no reaction.

"You wash up, do your business, and brush your teeth. I'll get the bed ready." Gibbs patted Tim on the shoulder as he walked out. He paused outside the door as he heard the faucet turn on. He smirked as he walked into his bedroom. One thing he could count on like clockwork, was Tim McGee obeying his orders. He quickly changed the sheets and was back before Tim was done.

The noise stopped, but the door stayed closed. Gibbs knocked, "I'm coming in." He opened the door and took a moment to take in the scene.

Tim was standing at the sink holding the tooth brush in his hand. He was resting on his fists, his shoulders were slumped, and his head was lowered. He still had some toothpaste stuck in the corner of his mouth, he looked like a wind-up toy that had completely unwound.

"Rinse your mouth, Tim."

McGee straighten, turned the water back on and used his hand as a cup to rinse his mouth. When he turned the faucet back off, Gibbs grabbed a towel. He took the toothbrush out of Tim's hand and set it back on the sink, he dried Tim's hand, then wiped his mouth. "Bed's ready."

He once again guided Tim. "Here, I have an old t-shirt for you. Take off your work clothes,." Gibbs grabbed each piece of clothing as Tim undressed and handed him the t-shirt. Tim sat down and fell back onto the bed, shirt still in his hands.

Gibbs smiled. "Okay, no shirt needed." He should have known the bourbon would have knocked McGee out, the kid rarely drank and he had never known him to ever be drunk. Gibbs shifted Tim, lifted his legs onto the bed and pulled the blanket up. He went to the other side of the bed and sat down. He placed a hand over Tim's eyes and talked.

After twenty minutes, Tim's breath evened out and Gibbs knew he was sound asleep. He leaned over and whispered in Tim's ear. "You're safe here. It's going to be a hard road, but you won't be alone through any of it. I promise."

Tim sighed in his sleep and rolled onto his side. He looked so young, now that sleep had eased the worry and grief that had a hold of him all week. Gibbs studied him a moment more, readjusted the blanket, then left.

He washed Tim's work clothes and found clean socks, undershirt, and a package of new underwear. He pressed the clothes and laid them out, ready for the morning. He then went to his basement to work on his boat.

He could now let out the anger that he had been keeping under control for Tim's sake. He sanded harder and faster as he thought about how easily it could have been four McGee bodies. He didn't know any of the details yet, but knew it wasn't an accident because of Tim's remark at the elevator. _Why would someone target the McGees, was this personal, was Tim the real target, is he still a target?_ A lot of questions.

He stopped sanding and took a swig of his bourbon and almost threw the glass against the wall, but didn't want to risk waking Tim. He calmed himself. Tomorrow would bring answers, he hoped.


	3. Chapter 3

Thank you for the overwhelming response to this story! I won't babble - just the usual - don't own, no money - sigh & sad face.

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><p>In the DallasFort Worth Airport, Mike was very impatiently waiting for his layover. It was supposed to only take an hour and a half, it had been over two.

He found a smoking zone and lit up, his cell phone going off. "Yeah. - - I'm in the damn airport! Slower than molasses in the winter! - - Are you kidding me? How the hell did he find them? - - Where's the kid?" Mike grinned. "Well, at least he's safe. - - Did you really think you could have stopped him from getting involved. - - Well, there's no stopping that now." Mike grinned even more.

~ "Flight 173 A to Washington DC, now boarding." ~

"Gotta go Hal. I'll call when I land." He closed his phone and put out his cigarette. He sighed and got himself moving. _This retirement stuff isn't all it's cracked-up to be._ He got in line, ready to complete the final leg of his flight.

XXXX

Gibbs woke early. He went to check on Tim and found him already in the shower.

_That's a good sign._ Gibbs smiled as he went to get breakfast started. He got the coffee on and heard the water turn off upstairs. That was his cue to rummaging through the refrigerator. _Eggs and toast, that won't be too heavy._

He got everything out and was about to start cooking, when something told him to go check on McGee. Never one not trust his feelings, he put down the bread and went upstairs.

Tim had not come out of the bathroom yet. Gibbs walked to the door and knocked, no response. He frowned. _So much for progress._

"I'm coming in." Gibbs opened the door and leaned against the door frame.

McGee had on socks, t-shirt and underwear, his hair still damp from the shower. His face was covered with shaving cream, razor in hand. He was in a similar position as last night, leaning against the sink with his fists, head down.

"Do you need some help Tim?"

McGee looked at his Boss slowly. "I can't ... how do I ... just like every ..."

Gibbs walked into the bathroom, closed the toilet lid and pushed McGee down to sit on it. "I know. It seems weird to be doing everyday stuff. Showering, shaving, eating, breathing." He took the razor from Tim and started shaving for him. It showed how much Tim was hurting that he didn't raise any objections having someone else do such a simple task for him.

"I don't remember much of the first week after I found out about my family." When he finished with Tim's left cheek, he moved to the right one. "I was a complete mess the first time I confronted Mike Franks about the investigation." He lifted Tim's chin. "Said when I could come to him looking and smelling like a human being, then he would talk to me." He pulled Tim's chin back down and got the 'mustache' area'. I was so mad at him. But you know Mike, he didn't give in until I cleaned myself up enough to be presentable in public again."

Gibbs took a towel and clean off the left over shaving cream.

"How'd you do it Boss?"

"All I had was my anger. That's what drove me to get myself back into the fight." He put a hand on each of Tim's shoulders and squatted down to his eye level. "You've got us."

Tim's sad green eyes searched Gibbs' strong blue ones. "I promise Tim. You take all the time you need. Small steps, big ones. What ever you need and we all will be there. You won't have to face this alone."

Tim took a deep breath and let it out slowly. "They should be here by now. I should get myself together." He tried to stand, but Gibbs put pressure on his shoulders to stop him.

"Let me see them first."

"Boss, I can ..."

Gibbs shook his head. "This is going to be the hardest thing you've ever done, Tim. Let me see them first, so that I can prepare you."

"We see dead bodies all the time. I'm used to it by now."

"Don't kid yourself. You know it's different when it's when someone you know."

Tim barley nodded. "I'm the oldest, it's my job to ..." He couldn't finish his sentence.

"To ID the bodies?" Gibbs completed for him. He knew how hard Tim was trying to keep everything together, to fulfill his last duty to his family. "You're going to, and I will be right there with you, but trust me, let me see them first."

"I trust you."

Gibbs gave him a smile. "I know you do." He stood and removed his hands. "You think you can handle finishing get ready, while I start our breakfast?"

"You don't have to do that Boss." He received a gentle head-slap in return.

"We both need to eat. If you want to feel useful, then you can wash the dishes while I get ready. Okay?"

"Okay." Tim sounded quiet, as if all this talking had taken all of his energy.

"Good. Be downstairs in ten minutes, or I'm coming back up here."

Tim nodded and Gibbs turned to leave. "Boss?"

He paused and turned to look over his shoulder.

"Thanks. For everything. I ..."

"You're welcome." Gibbs smiled again. "Ten minutes McGee."

Gibbs went back to the kitchen and got the food going.

Tim came down right on time, looking more like himself than he had since Monday.

Gibbs slid the plate of food, part of an egg omelet and two piece of toast. McGee just pushed it around his plate.

"If you don't eat at least half of that, we're not going anywhere."

Tim gave a ghost of a smile. "You sound just like my Dad ... used to."

"Would he let you get away without eating?"

"No way. I once spent a whole day just sitting at the table because I didn't want to eat. He sat there all day too."

Gibbs smiled at the comparison. "Well then, you know I'm serious."

"Yeah. You and he are ... were a lot alike."

"Thank you."

That made Tim's smile a little stronger and he ate. He didn't eat much more than half but least he had something in him. He did wash the dishes while Gibbs got ready, in record time. Something else his Dad and Gibbs were alike on. _Must be a military thing ... along with the head-slaps_. He smiled wistfully at his thoughts.

The ride in was quiet. Gibbs knew he needed to give McGee his space. Plus, things had gone so well this morning, that he was no longer worried about Tim's silence. What did worry him, was that Tim hadn't shown any real emotion yet. The shock yes, but no tears, no anger, nothing. _It's coming and when it does, ... _

When it did, they would all see a side of Timothy McGee that none knew existed.

XXXX

When they arrived at NCIS, Gibbs still held onto Tim's arm. When the elevators opened, Tony, Ziva and Abby were waiting in the bull-pen. Gibbs could tell they wanted to rush over to them, but were waiting for approval. Instead he guided McGee out of the elevator and paused at the start of the cubicles.

Abby was the first to speak. "Oh, Timmy! I just ... How are you?" She winced at her own question. "Do you ... can I ... would you like a hug?" This was the first time ever, that she didn't know how to talk to McGee.

"Yeah." Was his quiet response.

She went over to him and practically fell into him. His normally strong hug was missing and she could feel his slight shaking.

Tim rested his cheek against the top of Abby's head and noticed that Ziva looked ... odd. He wasn't sure quiet how to describe it, so he took a chance and extended one of his hands to her.

She quickly grabbed hold and let Tim pull her towards him. She wrapped her arms around him and Abby, grateful to finally be able to lend her support.

Tim looked up and nodded to Tony, who came right over and joined in the group hug.

Gibbs smiled. _Yeah, Tim's going to be okay. He may have lost one family, but he still has us._

Gibbs let them continue for a few moments, he hated to bring Tim back to the terrible task at hand, but knew putting it off wasn't going to do anyone any good. He cleared his throat.

Everyone, but Abby moved apart. She hung to Tim's arm.

"I'm going to see Ducky. You come down when your ready. Okay?"

"Sure, Boss."

Tim walked over to his desk and sat down, with Abby still clinging to his shoulder. As Gibbs walked past to go to the inner elevators, he pulled Abby along with him.

She started to protest, but Gibbs gave her the 'Don't disobey me' look and she quieted. She waited until the elevator door closed to ask her question. "Why'd you take me away from Tim?"

Gibbs sighed. "I don't want him overwhelmed."

"What do you mean."

"This has hit him hard and he's still in shock."

"Shock?"

Gibbs nodded. "He's barely functioning right now and hasn't even started grieving yet."

"So why can't I hug him?"

"You can, Abs. You just have to be careful."

She looked at him confused.

"Right now you could probably tattoo his face and he wouldn't blink."

That made Abby smile slightly and she nodded her understanding. Gibbs smiled back and pulled her into a hug, which gave her the permission to let go of some of her emotions and she let quiet tears fall.

"I've never seen him so hurt Gibbs. I don't even know how to approach him right now. How can I help him?"

Gibbs kissed the top of her head. "Just being there for him will help."

They reached her lab. "Are you going to be able to work this case Abs?"

She pulled back slightly offended. "Of course Gibbs. Timmy and his family deserve the best and I'm the best."

He pulled her in to kiss her head again. "I know you are."

She walked off the elevator but turned back. "Is he going to be okay?"

"Yes."

It was the strength of his answer that gave Abby the lift she needed. She nodded back to him and left for her lab to get all of her 'babies' up and running, ready to help McGee and his family.

XXXX

"What've you got for me Duck?" The question was out before the door had fully opened.

Doctor Mallard turned from the bodies. "Hello Jethro. How is Timothy holding up?"

Gibbs shook his head. "He's still in shock from it all. That's why I came down here first." He took a brief look at the bodies. "Is there any chance this is a murder/suicide?"

"From the reports, there was no firearm found at the scene, the bodies were laid out on their backs with arms at their sides and there is no sign of GSR on any of their hands."

Gibbs sighed. "So what do you have?"

"Actually, there is something interesting." Ducky gestured to Gibbs and they both walked towards the largest body.


	4. Chapter 4

I am truly overwhelmed and humbled by the responses I have been getting for this story. Thank you to everyone who has alerted and reviewed. I appreciate it more than I could ever express on here.

Special shout out to Lidil for bringing an error to may attention. Gin! LOL

Disclaimer: Just having some fun (although, the characters wouldn't think so!) own nothing, not making any money.

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><p>After Gibbs pulled Abby off of him, Tim had placed both elbows on his desk and rested his head in his hands.<p>

Tony and Ziva looked at each other, unsure of what to do, so they went back to work. Not that they had much to do until Ducky finished with the autopsies and the rest of reports came in from California.

McGee stayed still for a couple minutes. Then his head shot up and he looked around in confusion.

DiNozzo got up and walked over to his friend's desk. "Everything alright McGee?" He thought that by being formal, it would seem like a normal day for Tim.

"Where's Boss?"

Tony gave a quick glance to Ziva, then focused back on Tim. "He's with Ducky."

McGee still looked like he was in a fog. "And my family."

"Yeah, Tim."

He stood up quickly. "I should go."

Tony put a hand on his arm. "Are you ready for that?"

Tim looked at him and Tony could see how lost and broken his friend was. "I don't know if I'll ever be ready." He made his way around Tony and started for the elevator.

DiNozzo stood like a rock for a moment and then followed McGee. He gave a look to Ziva, who nodded her understanding. He slipped into the elevator as the doors were closing.

The ride down was quiet. He didn't know what to say to Tim, or if he should say anything - everything he thought to say sounded so cliché. So he just stood there.

When the doors opened to autopsy, McGee took a shaky step forward and grabbed onto the frame of the elevator.

"Hey, you don't have to do this yet." Tony put a hand on Tim's shoulder.

McGee stood straighter and started again. Tony stayed side by side with him.

They reached the door, it swished open and Tim froze.

Ducky had just lifted the elder McGee's left hand to show Gibbs the image carved on it. It looked like a figure eight with a short line on the top and bottom.

Gibbs and Ducky turned to Tim.

"Oh dear." Ducky laid the hand down. "I'm sorry Timothy. You shouldn't have had to see that."

Gibbs was intently studying McGee. He had a look of pure terror and ... recognition. "Tim, do you know what that is?"

Palmer came in at that moment. "Doctor Mallard, Ziva said that ... oh. I guess you already know. Um, hey McGee?"

Tim had looked nowhere except his dad's hand. Even when Ducky laid it back down, that is where he kept his focus. Jimmy's coming in broke through his concentration. "I have to go." He turned and ran out of the autopsy, with Tony and Gibbs right behind him.

Tim was standing at the elevator, furiously pushing the buttons. Tony reach him first. "Hey you alright?"

Tim's answer surprised both DiNozzo and Gibbs. In one fluid motion, McGee turn and punched Tony in the jaw, sending him backwards. He then turned and started towards the stairs.

Gibbs came from behind and put Tim in a headlock as Tony recovered.

"Let me go! You have to let me go!"

"Tim!" McGee struggled harder against Gibbs. _When did he get so strong?_ "McGee, calm down!"

"No! I have to leave!"

Gibbs hated to do it, but he moved the headlock around into a sleeper hold.

Tim continued to struggle, pulling and pushing against Gibbs arms. He dug his fingers into Gibbs' arms, drawing blood, even under Gibbs' jacket.

Tony watched from behind in confusion, while Ducky and Palmer came out to help. Jimmy went over to Tony, with an ice pack, which he pushed away, eyes glued to Gibbs and McGee.

Ducky stay back out of the way while he watched Tim losing his battle to stay conscious. When Tim finally went limp, he rushed in, taking the some of the weight from Gibbs. They both lowered Tim to the ground.

Gibbs stood full upright, trying to catch his breath while Ducky checked Tim's vitals.

"What the hell was that all about?" Tony said as he stood.

Gibbs shook his head and pulled off his jacket, revealing the scratches. "He knows ... something ... about that ... mark." He said in between deep breaths.

Jimmy shoved the ice pack into Tony's hand and walked over to Gibbs. He hissed as he looked at the scratches. "That must hurt." He turned and walked back into autopsy to get the first aid kit.

Gibbs looked at his arm. The scratches weren't very deep and wouldn't even leave a mark once healed. Gibbs shook his head. _The force McGee had to use was ... it was like he was fighting for his life. Why?_ He looked back down to Ducky. "He alright?"

Jimmy came back out and started to treat Gibbs' arm. He barley noticed.

"Yes, Jethro, no permanent damage ... physically. However, I do believe you are correct that Timothy knows something about those markings."

"Those?"

Ducky have a short nod. "Yes, each of his family has the same exact mark on the same hand, in the same place. It is definitely somebody's signature."

Tony removed the ice pack, finally finding his voice. "Signature?"

Ducky looked at him. "Yes."

"Crap."

"Duck. Start looking into recent serial killers. I want anyone who uses even something vaguely similar."

"Jethro, I still have three autopsies to perform. Why ..."

"I want you to profile them first, then send it up to Ziva. She can look for the connection to the McGees ... or Tim."

Ducky sighed. "Very well." He looked down at McGee. "We should get him to someplace more comfortable."

Once Jimmy finished, Gibbs put his jacket back on and looked at DiNozzo and waved him over. Tony got Tim into a sitting position. He slung Tim's left arm around his neck. Gibbs squatted down and did the same with Tim's right. They lifted him as one unit.

"Wow. He's really lost weight." Tony said as he lifted with too much force, nearly toppling them.

Gibbs glared at him. "You ready now?"

"Yes, Boss."

Jimmy went to open a smelling salt, but Gibbs stopped him by grabbing it out of his hand. "Not yet."

Jimmy looked confused, but nodded anyway.

"Come along Mr. Palmer, we have much work to do."

"Yes Doctor Mallard."

They both gave a final look to McGee before returning to autopsy.

The elevator door opened just as the doors to autopsy closed behind Ducky and Jimmy.

Gibbs and Tony got on and rode in silence. They reached the level above the bull-pen, covertly getting McGee into a conference room.

Once Tim was settled in a chair, Gibbs turned to Tony, giving a smirk, gesturing to his face. "Always be prepared."

Tony place his hand tenderly against his swelling jaw. "Yeah well, ... who knew Probie learned how to throw a punch." He squinted to Gibbs. "You giving him lessons?"

Gibbs shook his head. He then looked at McGee and the smirk faded. "Go help Ducky find those cases."

"Boss, ... I ..."

"I know you want to be here, but I think he'll open up better with less of an audience." He gave a side look to Tony when he didn't move. "Don't worry."

"Easier said than done." He gave one last look to Gibbs and McGee, then left.

Gibbs took a deep breath and let it out slowly as he ran his fingers through his hair. Then he walked over and poured a glass of water, setting on the table in front of McGee. He pulled the smelling salt out of his pocket, broke it and place it under Tim's nose. The reaction was instantaneous.

Tim's eyes flew open and his head shot up as he looked around, finally coming to rest on Gibbs' worried blue eyes. His expression changed from confused to confrontational. "What do you want?"

Gibbs blink at the sneer in McGee's voice. "Tell me what that was all about."

"Why do you care?" He tried to get up, but Gibbs pushed him back into the chair. "Just get out of my way."

"Not happening. Talk to me."

"Right, because you've always been there to listen before." Tim glared at him.

Gibbs narrowed his eyes, through the attitude and the glare, he could see that McGee was scared, really scared. That was the only thing keeping him from ripping into his agent. "Tim ..."

"Oh, it's Tim now is it. When did you remember that I actually have a first name?"

Gibbs put a hand on the back of the chair and a hand on the table and leaning into McGee's personal space. "Tell me what's going on."

"Since when are you concerned? I'm not Tony, the son you never had. Not Abby, who can do no wrong. Or, Ziva, who needs saved from her own family. I'm just the geek that gets pushed around."

"No one ..."

The two were so into their cat-and-mouse game that neither noticed the conference room door opening and quietly shutting.

"Yeah you guys do. I guess its punishment for having a good family. I don't need saved, so I don't get to be part of Gibbs special inner circle."

Gibbs slammed his hand on the table, noticing how much Tim was trying not to flinch. "Damn it McGee!"

Tim went to give another retort when a voice sounded from the door. "That's enough!"

Gibbs stood up and turned to the door, while Tim lowered his head to his chest.

"Mike? What the hell ... never mind, I don't have time right now for any side 'projects'." Gibbs frowned as Mike started walking towards him and McGee. "And since when do you tell me how to talk to one of my people?"

Mike stood toe to toe , eye to eye with him. "Oh, you'll make time for this." He pushed a file to Gibbs chest. "Besides, who said I was talking to you?" He side stepped Gibbs, squatted down and laid his arms across Tim's knees. "Hey, kid. How you holding up?"

Tim looked up and very young, confused, hurt and scared eyes roamed across Mike's face. "He got to them, Agent Mike. Just like he said he would."

_Agent Mike? Franks never let anyone but kids ..._ A horrible realization struck Gibbs. He gave a quick glance down at the file Franks had thrust onto him, without opening it, before returning his gaze to the two in front of him.

"Aw, hell. I know kid and I'm sorry. It never should have happened."

"It's all my fault. If I never ... if they ..."

"Hey! What have I told you? You are not responsible for his actions, not then and sure as hell not now."

Tim's desperate eyes pressed for Mike to understand. "Please Agent Mike, you have to let me go."

"No way. Made that mistake once, ain't gonna do it again."

"Please. I have to leave. Please." Tim's voice matched his eyes. He leaned forward and placed his head on Mike's shoulder, still begging to leave.

Mike, with a very practiced hand, reached behind him, grabbed a pair of hand cuffs, and before Tim could react, had one cuff around the arm of the chair and one around McGee's right wrist.

Tim pulled back. "What're you doing?"

Mike stood. "Making sure you stay here while I bring your team up to speed."

"NO! You can't involve them!"

"We're already involved McGee." Gibbs tried to sound authoritative, but neither of them seemed to hear him.

"Do you really think ol' Jethro ..." Mike gave a quick jerk of his head to acknowledge Gibbs. "... here is going to stand back and let this monster get away?"

"No way. Not happening." Gibbs interjected.

"Please! You cant! They're ... they're all I have left. Please! You know what will happen if he finds out! Just let me go to him! Please!" Tim's eyes were frantic, trying to get Mike to see 'reason'.

Mike just looked at him.

"No, no, no. You can't let him kill anyone else ..."

"That includes you kid."

"... if I leave, I can save ..."

Mike reached out and placed a hand on top of McGee's head and he quieted. "I swear. This time, I will put him down and you will never have to worry about him again. Ever. I know it's a small comfort now ..." He moved his hand from side to side, gently rubbing Tim's head. "... but I will make sure he won't take anyone else from you."

Mike rubbed for a few more moments, until he saw that McGee had withdrawn into himself. He nodded and turned to Gibbs. "Get your team together, it's story time Probie."

"Mike? What?"

"Hold off on the questions. I only wanna do this once." He glanced a look over his shoulder to Tim, then focused back on Gibbs. "You're gonna wanna have an agent in here with him and one outside the door."

"Why?"

"Trust me. The kid's gonna try to get away from us whenever he can."

"Mike ..."

Franks reached out and placed a hand on Gibbs' shoulder. "All in good time. Just do as I say for now."

Gibbs huffed as he looked over Mike's shoulder to McGee. He had placed his free arm on the table and had rested his head on it. "You stay here until I get everything situated?"

"Sure thing. Besides, we're still waiting for two more to join our lil' party."

Gibbs frowned and started to say something.

"Time's a wasting, Probie."

Gibbs nodded, looked over at McGee, then turned to get everyone together.


	5. Chapter 5

You guys have been great! Thank you to all the wonderful responses! I won't take up too much space because this is a long chapter. I thought about splitting it, but then I think the flow of the story would have suffered - so please, hang in there with me through this one.

Oh yeah; no money, don't own, you know the rest.

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><p>They all gathered in Vance's office, he sat his desk, Franks was sitting at the head of the conference table, Gibbs standing to his right. Tony was seated on the right with Ziva next to him. Abby was to Franks left. When Ducky and Palmer came in, taking the seats next to Abby, Gibbs thought they were ready to start. "Okay, Mike out with it."<p>

"Not yet. We're still missing some people."

Gibbs gave a confused look. Before he could say anything, Vance's intercom buzzed. "Yes, Pamela? - - Good, send them in."

Everyone turned to look at the door and were surprised to see Fornell walk in, carrying an evidence box, joined by a man none of them recognized, well almost none.

"Sure as hell took your time getting here Hal."

"Good to see you too Franks."

"Where's JR? Don't tell me he sent this yahoo in his place?"

Fornell bristled at the comment. "Agent Ryzner retired a long time ago."

"So did I. I'm still here."

Fornell went to bite back, when Gibbs' whistle put a stop to the bantering. "Alright! Enough!" The three men looked at him. "Oh, finally remember there are others in the room?" He glared at each of them. "So is somebody gonna fill us in?"

Mike turned to look tat the team. "Well, ya'll know me, and Fornell over there. This fat slob, is Harold Strasser, a US Marshal."

Hal was shorter than Fornell by a couple of inches, and a bit round in the middle. He was balding, having just a circle of gray hair that went from one ear, around the back of his head to the other. However, he was no slob. All could see the muscles of his body as they flexed and relaxed under his pressed, well fitted suit and he exuded an air of authority.

"And you're a lazy bastard." Hal replied. He glanced around the room. "What is this? Show and tell?"

Mike just smirked.

Fornell placed the evidence box on a back counter, saving it for later, and came to stand by Gibbs, who raised an eyebrow at him. He shrugged and turned his attention to the group. "Well, Mike, this is your show. Get us started."

Hal harrumphed and sat down in the nearest chair.

Mike took a moment to get his thoughts in order. He turned to Gibbs and nodded towards him. "This was before you joined NIS, Probie." He turned back to the team. "I received a call from Daniel McGee. He was the new supply officer at NAS Pax River. See his wife was pregnant with their first child and he wanted to be close, especially since she was due in a couple of months, so he asked for a stateside reassignment. He kept coming up short on his MRE's and medical supplies. He thought someone on base was stealing, then selling them on the black market. He asked for our help."

"Things didn't work as quick as the do now. There had to be a formal request, that got a approved, that got assigned to a team, yadda yadda yadda. By the time we actually made it out there, Dan had caught the 'culprit'." Mike gave a wistful smile. "It was this little kid." The smile faded. "An abused and battered little kid."

"He was somewhere between eight and ten-years-old. Wouldn't say a word to us, scared of everyone. Well, almost everyone one. He had taken a liking to Dan's wife, Cynthia." Mike gave a small laugh. "Her and her round belly. Dan wanted the theft charges dismissed and instead a search started as to who the parents of the kid were. We had no problem with that. Dan and Cindy took full responsibility for the kid. We got as much information as we could, which wasn't very much, since he wouldn't talk, took pictures and prepared to leave."

Mike paused. Gibbs thought he was going to need to prod him to continue, but he restarted on his own. "Then the first murder happened. A Petty Office found near the base perimeter, strangled, with a mark on his hand." He turned to Fornell and nodded.

Fornell turned and grabbed the evidence box he had brought in, dug through it for a moment and pulled out a case file. He picked up the narrative. "At the time, Special Agent Jerry Ryzner, JR, was tracking a serial killer all across the country. They had nothing on this guy. The killer left no one alive and left no trace of himself behind, at least none that we could find with the forensics we had available at the time. The guy killed men, women, children, entire families. Sometime by strangulation, others with a gun, or a knife, or a pipe, anything he had handy. The only reason we knew it was the same killer was ..."

"Was the mark." Tony finished for him.

Fornell looked over and nodded at DiNozzo. "Right. It was the one detail we kept out of the media, so we wouldn't be distracted by copy cats."

Franks took over again. "The second murder had taken place by the time the FBI showed up. When that happened, they weren't so sure it was the same killer because he never struck in the same place twice, ever. It wasn't until JR saw the autopsy reports, noting the marking on the hands that he finally believed it was their perp. They brought two entire FBI teams to work with NIS to find this guy. By the third murder, we figured there was something on base he wanted."

"Or someone." Ziva interjected.

"Yeah. It wasn't exactly hard to add up that the murders started when the kid was taken into custody." Mike sighed. "JR and I went round and round on the confronting the boy. I wasn't happy about it, but he was possibly our only lead. We went to Dan and Cindy that night. The boy was still in the base hospital and I knew he wouldn't be comfortable to talk to anyone else."

"Dan was angry, he had become real protective of the kid, but eventually he saw it our way. When we talked to him, we let Dan take the lead. The boy, still hadn't said a word and when JR showed him the pictures of the symbol, he just shook his head and hid behind Dan. JR tried to push, but when the kid started crying and buried his face in Dan's leg, the parent-to-be kick us out." Mike grinned a little. "I guess those parental instincts kicked in early."

"There was just one problem, though. The kid had real expressive eyes, you could read him like a book. When JR had shown him those pictures, he recognized that symbol. We all knew it, even Dan, so he refused to leave the hospital that night and Cindy joined him."

"It was the first time the kid tried to escape, climbed out the window. I had a feeling and stationed my senior agent, Steve Hohl, outside. He easily caught the kid, it was keeping a hold of him that was the problem." Mike gave a small laugh. "The kid started scratching and biting. Left some pretty good teeth marks on Steve, but the kid was nothing but skin and bone, plus injured so he was easy to get under control."

"It was the first time the kid was ever violent. Once back in the hospital room, he punched Dan and pushed Cindy away. Although he was very careful to push only on her leg, never on the baby and he never raised a hand to her." Mike paused again, lost in thought.

Hal cleared his throat to get him going again. Mike jumped a little. "Right, where was I?"

Tony tried to remind him, but Franks waived him off. "I remember. Once we got him calmed down enough, Dan started to press harder. Trying to tell the kid he wasn't in trouble, he just needed to tell us what he knew. The first words the kid spoke were 'How many?' Took us by surprise. It was JR who realize what he was asking and told him about the three murders on base. Man, if looks could kill, JR'd be dead many times over."

"The kid burst into tears, apologizing and started to beg to be let go. It took both Dan and Cindy wrapping their arms around the kid for him to finally spill."

"Well?" Tony asked irritably. He was getting a really bad feeling about this story.

"He confessed that he was the son of the Eternity Killer."

Everyone was silent. Mike took a quick look at Gibbs, who had a horrified look on his face.

Jimmy was the one who broke the silence. "Eternity Killer?"

"Got the name because someone commented that the mark looked like an hourglass and time was up for anyone who crossed this guy's path." Fornell answered.

"The kid was terrified of him and had run away, thinking he wouldn't be found on a military base. The things that kid saw and went through ..." Mike shook his head. "Torture is too kind of a word for it. Anyways, the kid said his dad, Vincent Kevin Talbot, would just keep killing until he went back to him. Well, we sure as hell weren't going to let that happen. Until ..." Mike sighed unhappily.

"Until what?" Ziva asked angrily.

"Until there were two more murders. The kid was hysterical. Saying he couldn't let anyone else get killed. Damn it! You would think, even back then, that five murders couldn't take place on a military base like that! Even with the heightened security, that monster, was picking people off one by one. We decided to let the kid go."

"You what?" Abby asked in shock. "How could ..."

Franks put a hand on her leg. "Give me some credit darlin'. We followed along. There was no way we were going to let him go back and stay with that waste of flesh. It's just we were too far behind, by the time we caught up to them ..."

"What?" Tony breathed out.

"Talbot was beating the kid, bad. Already broke his nose and right arm, was working on his legs with a baseball bat. That was the first night I saw what parental rage could do. See Dan went with us, as much as I tried to convince him not to."

"Why would you do that?" Abby asked through tears.

"He had a pregnant wife that I was in no mood to make into a widow and single mom. Neither of them listened to me. Cindy just kissed her husband and told him to bring the boy back." Mike shook his head, but he was smiling. "Dan charged and took Talbot down before any of us could react. Got a few good hits with the bat and knocked him unconscious. I wasn't about to stop him, but JR had other ideas." Mike let out a grunt.

Fornell shook his head. "I can understand how you guys felt, but if you would have let Dan McGee kill Talbot ..."

Mike glared and the rebuttal died on Fornell's lips.

Ziva took a moment to look around the room. She paused when she landed on Gibbs, he looked devastated. _There is something more going on here._ "So he has escaped and gone after the McGees? Is that who killed them?"

"It's more complicated than that." Mike also looked around the room. Gibbs had figured it out and DiNozzo was getting there.

"What happened to the kid?" Tony asked, terrified he already knew the answer.

Mike looked at him. DiNozzo was refusing to make the leap himself, he wanted to actually hear it. Mike took a deep breath. "Dan and Cindy adopted him and he turned into the best big brother their newborn girl could ever have wanted." He waited for the reaction.

Everyone was in shocked silence, none of them really wanting to believe what Mike had just told them. Abby was first with the denials.

"No, Mike. You mean boy. He was Timmy's adopted older brother, right? Right?" She grabbed his hand and squeezed.

Franks shook his head. "No kiddo." He looked around the room.. "Tim is the adopted son of the McGees."

"You're wrong!" Tony stood. "There's no way ... he's related to ..." He looked to Gibbs for help. "Boss, tell him he's wrong."

Gibbs just shook his head.

"It does explain his reaction to the mark on his adoptive father's hand." Ducky spoke quietly.

"His _**father**_." Mike stressed. "Dan was the father the kid always deserved. Not that pile of trash."

"Yes. Of course. I didn't mean ..." Ducky actually flushed. Abby put a hand on his shoulder. He grabbed it and squeeze. No words were needed.

Ziva pressed her earlier question. "So he is out. Parole or escaped?"

Fornell took over. "Escaped."

"Why is he even alive?"

Fornell took a moment to pinch the bridge of his nose before he answered Ziva. "Because, David, the state where he committed the first murder claimed jurisdiction, unfortunately they don't have the death penalty."

Vance chanced a glance at Gibbs. He was in total shock and in no position to give orders. "Alright, the first thing we need to do is find out how he got into the Witness Protection Database and ..."

"He didn't." Strasser said for the first time since Franks had started.

Vance sighed. "Listen, we all would like to think that our agency ..."

Strasser shook his head. "Tim was never put in the program."

All but Franks stared at him in dismay. It was Tony who asked. "Why the hell not?"

Hal shrugged. "We never knew his real name, never told us. Cynthia is the one who named him."

Now everyone was confused, so Strasser elaborated. "Remember he wouldn't talk to us. Franks over there was happy to just keep calling him 'kid'. Cynthia would have none of it. She took a good hard look at him and said 'Timothy, yup he looks like a Timothy to me.' The kid like it, so it stuck."

"What about the trial? I'm sure when Tim had to testify ..."

"He didn't have to DiNozzo. See, that filth kept mementos of each kill." Franks practically spat. "Hair, jewelry, clothing, fingernails ... fingers. We found more than enough that the last time Talbot saw Tim was the night we captured him. He never knew Dan's name, so we felt it was safe to not put him in the program."

Ziva had a concern. "Was not his name on his uniform?"

Mike grinned. "Didn't wear his uniform. Said he was going as a civilian, not as a Captain of the Navy."

"So then why is he here?" Abby gestured towards Strasser.

"It was decided the kid deserved a clean start. I got him a new birth certificate with Dan and Cynthia as his parents, created school records for him and erased anything that would ever have connected him to Talbot. There's nothing even in a sealed record. The biological son of Vincent Kevin Talbot just stop existing."

Vance rubbed his hand across his face. "Then somehow, Talbot has tracked down either someone from the base or the investigation and found out about the McGees."

"Not necessarily." Now everyone looked at Fornell. He sighed as he rummaged through the evidence box again. "See, the McGees weren't the only ones interested in adopting Tim." He pulled out a thick folder. "There are at least ten families listed there."

"Are you suggesting that Talbot just happened to kill the correct family on the first try?" Ziva asked incredulously.

Fornell shrugged.

Tony shook his head. "That's way to big of a coincidence... and you know how we feel about those. Right Boss?" He was getting worried about Gibbs. Sure, he's a functional mute, but he usually took charge by now, barking out orders and giving assignments.

Franks glanced at them both. "I agree. There is something else going on." He gave them all a hard look. "I just want you all to be prepared."

"Oh, do not worry. I will be more than happy to deal with this ... escapee." Ziva hiss predatorily.

"I'm not talkn' about him." Franks made sure everyone was looking at him. "I mean the kid."

"What the hell are you suggesting Franks?" Tony asked angrily. "You don't think Tim's had any part in this?"

"Of course not. Get your head outta your ass!" Mike glared. "You're jaw looks like it hurts."

"What does that ..."

"He's going to get worse. Be prepared. He will become violent or distant or both, he will say things you never thought would ever come from his mouth, he will try to push everyone away and run to that man."

"Why?" Abby's head was spinning.

Mike gave her hand a squeeze. "As a way to protect ya'll." He looked at each person around the table. "You can't let anything he is going to do or say affect you in any way."

"So what do we do now?" Abby asked.

Vance was going to dole out assignments, but Gibbs finally spoke up. "First, we are going to get Tim settled at my place. DiNozzo and David will accompany us. First to Tim's apartment and then back to my house." He turned to Vance. "Who has jurisdiction?"

"It hasn't been decided yet. Obviously was originally an FBI case, but ..." He sighed and looked over to Fornell. "What's your agency's take on this."

"Hal and I have convinced them to let this be a joint case, since that's what it was way back when. As long as we're involved, we have no problem letting you do all the work." He tried for a little levity.

Gibbs nodded. "Alright. Do we know how he escaped yet?"

"Still working on it Jethro." Fornell admitted.

"Leon, Tim's going to need a protection detail Once they get to my place, the three of us will come back here. Fornell, I want you to work with Tony and Ziva on finding out how he escaped." The three nodded. "Abs, you work with Strasser. Talbot found out about the McGee's somehow. Find it. Get help from Cyber-crimes if you need." They both nodded. Gibbs looked back at Vance, who nodded his approval. "Ducky, I think you have the autopsies to finish?"

"Yes, indeed, Jethro."

"Alright, let's move."

As everyone filed out, Fornell grabbed Gibbs' arm to hold him back. "There's something I think you should see."

Franks hung back too. "Is that really necessary, Tobias?"

Fornell glared at him. "I've learned a long time ago, it does no good to try to hide anything from Gibbs."

Gibbs, for his part, sighed. "What are you talking about now?" His head felt heavy from all this new information on his agent that he thought he knew.

Fornell reached into the box once again and pulled out a VHS tape. "Let Franks go with David and DiNozzo. You need to watch this. Alone. It's already cued to the right place."

"Tobias ..."

The FBI agent placed a hand on his friend's shoulder. "Trust me. You will want to see this alone."

Gibbs looked between his friend and his mentor. "Can't you just tell me?"

"Not this time, Jethro." The look on Fornell's face was unreadable. Franks just shook his head and left.

"What's on here?"

Fornell patted his shoulder and also left.

Gibbs looked over his shoulder to Vance. "Don't look at me. I have no clue. You'll have to watch it in one of the interrogation observation rooms, unless you want to wait for AV to set up something in a conference room."

"No. I wanna get this over with." He strode out of the Director's office, leaving the man to his own thoughts.


	6. Chapter 6

Since the last one was so long, this ones a little shorter. I thought about different ways to split these to make the chapters more even, but for story flow, I think this works best.

If you guys end up liking this one, maybe ... just maybe, I'll post a second chapter today. *wink, wink*

I own nothing of NCIS nor am I making any money. Enjoy

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><p>Gibbs stormed into Observation Room 3. He really didn't have time for all of this. Sighing, he put the tape in the machine and waited. It took a moment, but the picture cleared showing a small boy sitting in a chair, staring out a hospital window. His nose was taped, right arm in a cast and sling, and what appeared to be a brace on each leg.<p>

Gibbs knew that he was seeing Tim only a few days after being rescued from his biological father. He fought to control the anger that was building inside of him.

A motion off the corner of the screen caught his attention. The door had opened, a nurse walked in and started checking Tim over. As she stood to leave she addressed the boy in a very harsh tone, which surprise Gibbs. "You have another one. Try not to mess it up this time. You can't spend the rest of your life in here." She glared at Tim then opened the door. "You can come in now."

Gibbs stopped breathing as the woman entered the room. She smiled at the nurse. "Thank you." She walked over the boy, who had not move a muscle. "Hi there. I'm ..."

"Shannon." Gibbs breathed out as he touched the screen that held his wife's image.

She pulled up a chair and sat with her knees touching Tim's. She didn't say anything else, just waited for the child to acknowledge her.

It took Tim about five minutes before he finally turned from the window. Gibbs watched Tim's face look at Shannon in awe, then a small, shaking hand reached out and gently grabbed a lock of hair. He ran it through his fingers a couple of times, then seemed to realized what he was doing, blushed embarrassed, and pulled back.

"Sorry."

Shannon smiled. "It's okay little one. My hair is my best feature, its how I caught my husband." She winked at him.

"Your eyes."

"Excuse me?"

"It's your eyes ... your best feature ... I mean. Cindy says the eyes tell you everything about a person."

"Cynthia McGee?"

"Yeah. She ..." Tim paused and turned back out the window. "Never mind."

Shannon gave a sad smile. "Well, sounds like she's a pretty smart lady."

"Yeah, I guess." Tim fell silent again. However, even from the video, Gibbs could tell he was thinking through something, weighing his options. As he scrunched his face and took a deep breath to talk, Shannon stood.

She walked behind him and stared out the window. "What do you see?"

Tim had to look up at her. "What?"

"When you're staring out this window, what do you see?"

He looked back out the window. "The base."

Shannon put a hand on Tim's shoulder and waited for the tension to leave before she spoke again. "No. You are seeing something more. What is it?"

Tim smiled. "The future. My future, I hope. Dan says ..."

"Dan says what, sweetie?"

"That I can be just like him. That I can protect ..." Tim's voice started to waiver as he fought not to cry.

"I think going into the military to protect others is a wonderful idea. That's what my husband does and I'm so very proud of him. I worry something terrible, but I know that he is working to make the world a better place."

Tim spoke so softly that Gibbs had to strain to hear him over the hiss of the tape. "That's what I want to do more than anything." He looked up at Shannon again, she looked down and the two smiled at each other.

This time, it was Tim who spoke first. "So, why do you want me?"

The question took Shannon by surprise, but not Gibbs. Knowing how analytical Tim's mind is, he'd want to know all the facts. Shannon smiled and moved back to the chair, she grabbed Tim's uninjured hand.

Gibbs heart was fluttering watching the bonding going on between his wife and the child that would end up as one of his agents.

"I want to give a good home to someone who deserves it."

"Can't you have any of your own? Is it because your husband's deployed?"

"Oh ,no. We have a daughter, Kelly. Would you like to see a picture of her?" Shannon turned so quickly to get her wallet out of her purse that she missed the change of demeanor in Tim.

She held out the open wallet. "See, this would be your sister."

In a move that made both Shannon and Gibbs jump, Tim reached out and swatted the wallet away. "Get out! Leave!" He hissed and then turned back to the window.

"Tim ..."

"No! Just get out of here!"

Shannon calmly got up, picked up the still spinning wallet and looked lovingly at the picture of her daughter. "She's a little younger than you." She walked over, stood in front of him and tried again to show him the picture.

He refused to look at it. "What are you deaf or just stupid?"

Gibbs was angry for a new reason now. _How could he turn on Shannon like that?_ Fuming he was surprised to see an understanding smile on his wife's face.

"Tim ..."

"Why won't they just let me go with Agent Mike?" Tim mumbled to himself.

One of the things Shannon was an expert at, was hearing and understanding mumbled words. "Agent Mike Franks? Why do you want to go with him?"

Tim turned and glared at her. "Why are you still here?" He actually pushed her away. "Get out!" His voice raising.

Shannon stumbled backwards at his shove, but she reached out to him. "Tim ..."

"No!" He raised his casted arm and swung at her, missing her by a mile, instead hitting it against the chair.

Gibbs blinked in shock. _He could have easily hit her, he missed on purpose._ As he caught up to what his wife had already figured out, the MP's stormed into the room. They were heading straight for Tim.

Shannon turned to them and put her hands on her hips. "Stop!" The three burley men paused in their tracks at the stern tone to her voice and look on her face.

"Mrs. ..."

She pointed to the door. "Out."

"What?"

"I do _**NOT**_ need you in here. Out."

"He's dangerous."

Shannon glared and didn't change her stance. The MP's exchanged looks, then turned and left.

Gibbs smiled at his wife. When she put her foot down, no one, not even him, could get her to budge. It was one of the many things he loved about her.

When the door closed behind them, Shannon relaxed her features and turned back to the boy.

"They're right, you know."

"What?"

Tim looked at her, tears threatening to fall. "You know who I am, right?"

Shannon squatted down to met him at eye level. "I know that you are a little, hurt boy who is looking for a family."

Tim shook his head. "No. Honestly. You know who my father is, w-who I could e-end up like?" The tears started falling.

"Oh, Tim, just because he's your father doesn't mean you'll end up like him."

"You don't know that! One day I could wake up and be a monster. Do you know who was the first person he killed? It was his brother. His brother! Your little girl doesn't deserve to live with that hanging over her head!"

Gibbs didn't realize he that even he had tears rolling down his face. _He was trying to protect Kelly, he didn't know anything about her and he wanted to protect her._ He thought about how protective Tim had been of Sarah, and would have been proud to have someone like that looking out for his daughter.

Shannon reached out and pulled the boy into a hug. "Is that why you want to go with Mike Franks, because he doesn't have any family?"

"Yeah. Plus he could stop me if ... if I turn into ..."

She pulled the boy away from her. "What do you mean stop you?" Tim just stared at her. Shannon let her own tears fall as she realized what the boy was telling her. "Oh. You'll never be like him." She pulled the boy back to her.

"How? How do you know? How can you be so sure?" Tim cried harder and grabbed onto the first person who had seen through his facade.

"Because you don't want to be."

"But ..."

"It means a lot little one. Most of what we do and who we become is because of the choices we make. You are choosing not to be like him, so you won't be."

"I-I-I d-don't w-wanna be. I-I don't e-ever want to h-h-hurt anyone. P-please, I d-don't ..." He buried his head in her shoulder, sobbing.

Shannon gather him up in her arms and sat back in her chair. She started rocking with him and began singing a lullaby. It was one reserved for when Kelly had her worst nightmares.

Tim cried himself to sleep in her arms. As his breathing evened out, Shannon kissed the top of his head. "Your so strong, Tim. You have such a strong will. Jethro is just going to love you."

The door opened, showing the nurse coming back in, then the screen went blank.

Gibbs collapsed into the technician's chair and sat there in stunned silence, tears falling down his face. He could tell that his wife had her heart set on getting that little boy to be a Gibbs. _How did he end up with the McGees? He should have been ... he was almost ... my son._

As the phrase 'My son' bounced around his head, he found himself rewinding the tape and watching again and again.

On the third time, he went back a little to far and caught the end of a previous session. He watched as one of the MP's held Tim by the scruff of the neck while the others helped up a terrified woman. After she was escorted out, the one holding Tim roughly tossed him against the frame of the bed, hissing 'Monster' as he walked out.

Tim stood there keeping the mask up until he was alone. Then he gave a sad, but satisfied small smile and wiped a way a tear before it could fall. He nodded to himself and hobbled over to his chair by the window.

Gibbs was seeing red. _How dare they do that to my ... to Tim! How could no one see what Shannon did?_ He watched the two again, calming down and letting his mind wonder to all the what if's and could have beens.

He was getting ready to rewind again, when his cell phone rang. "Gibbs." He frowned. "What? I'm on my way!" He ejected the tape and took it with him as he bolted out the door.


	7. Chapter 7

Many of you have wondered how Tim could have turned out so good since his father was a serial killer. Let me give you the real world inspirations.

I know a woman who was abused as a kid. She couldn't wait to have kids of her own so she could do the same, or worse to them. That is until she held her newborn child in her arms. She couldn't imagine hurting him that way ... and never did. Yes, she disciplined him, but never let it get away from her.  
>Second was my own mother. Her mom (my grandmother) was NEVER affectionate. Even pushed my mom off of her when she tried to hug her. It made my mom feel terrible. So, when I was growing up, she made sure she hugged me &amp; told me she loved me - everyday.<p>

They knew what their parents did was wrong and did everything they could to make sure they did better. I know this takes it to the extreme ... but hey, that's what fanfiction is all about.

Ok, I'm going to get off my soapbox now. Oh, um, don't hate me too much for what I do in this chapter.

You know the drill - own nothing, no money, just exercising my brain.

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><p>Gibbs was a bad driver, but now he was completely reckless. Driving worse than Ziva, he made it to Silver Springs in half the time it should have taken. All the while, he kept replaying the video in his head. Somewhere along the way Gibbs lost 'almost' from the phrase 'almost my son'. By the time he threw the car into park, blocking the roadway, he was a distraught parent instead of a take charge team leader.<p>

He jogged to the front of Tim's apartment building. He noticed two figures sitting in the back of a car. He paused when he got close enough to recognize that it was Tim's head that was leaning against the back passenger window.

Gibbs gave a small knock on the window. Tim looked up, his eyes were terrified and pleading. Gibbs flattened his hand on the window, wanting to reach inside and comfort the lost soul in front of him.

McGee's face turned hard and he looked away. Gibbs went to knock on the window again, when Mike's voice came from behind him.

"'Bout time you got here."

Gibbs didn't want to, but he turned around to face his old mentor. "What the hell is going on Mike?"

"Come on." Mike jerked his head to the building and took a couple of steps before realizing Gibbs wasn't following. He turned to look at Gibbs.

"I can't just leave him like that."

"Don't worry, Probie, Strasser is in there with him. He'll make sure the kid doesn't take off." Franks gave a toothy grin. "He handcuffed the two of them together."

"Mike ..."

"Don't growl at me." Franks glared. "If your people would have listened to what I said earlier, then the kid wouldn't be in that position."

Franks started walking, this time, Gibbs followed. "What do you mean?"

Mike stayed quiet until they got to the entrance to Tim's apartment. "I think your team should be pulled from this case."

"What? Why?"

In answer, Franks pushed the door open, revealing total devastation. Gibbs walked in slowly looking around, there didn't appear to be anything that wasn't broken, torn or ruined in some way.

"Your people are too soft for this." Franks hissed. "Your girly over there is upset about what the kid said to her ..." he waived his hand towards Ziva, then gestured to Tony "... and junior there is mad at him because she's upset." He shook his head. "You're no good for him, like this."

"You have no idea what you're talking about Franks!" DiNozzo stormed over. "Am I mad? Hell yeah, but not at Tim."

Ziva came over as well. "I am more upset at myself than what McGee said to me." She looked straight at Gibbs. "It will not happen again." She turned to Franks. "Do not remove him from us."

Before Mike could respond, Gibbs spoke first. "Before we make any decision, I want to know what happened ... in detail."

Tony and Ziva looked at each other, Tony started. "Well, Boss ..."

~Flashback~

Tony lead Ziva to the conference room where Tim was. They nodded to Agent Andrews standing guard outside the door and again to Agent Burton on the inside.

Tim was still in the same position as when Gibbs and Franks left. Tony and Ziva exchanged a look, unsure how to proceed. Franks arrived behind them. He put a hand on each of their shoulders. "I'll get him."

Franks moved around them and again squatted in front of McGee. "Hey kid, time to go get packed."

Tim looked up, but not really registering anything. He shifted enough to let Franks uncuff him. He stood when Mike did. When Franks turned around to face Tony and Ziva, Tim rested his forehead on Mike shoulder.

Again, the two agents exchanged a look, this time worried. Tim looked like he was trying to hide behind Franks, being taller made that difficult. Tony started to say something to comfort his friend, Mike cut him off.

"Well, lead the way."

Tony frowned, but nodded. He took lead, with Ziva right behind him. Mike and Tim were next, with Andrews and Burton bringing up the rear. When they reached the elevators, the protection detail took one side, everyone else on the other.

McGee shrank back into the corner, Franks standing in front of him, as though he was a shield between Tim and the rest of the world.

Tony was starting to get angry. He could take care of his partner. He reached out, "Tim ..."

If anything, McGee shrank back even more and seemed to try to melt into Franks.

Franks reached his arm protectively behind him. He looked at DiNozzo and shook his head.

Tony faced forward, hurt and upset that he had been rejected by his friend. _What's he thinking? Why is he acting like he's scared of us?_

The ride to Tim's apartment was quiet. Tony and Ziva were sitting up front, Tim and Mike in the back. Tim kept his head lowered, not looking at anyone.

_Is he ashamed? Does he think we think differently of him?_ Tony had nothing but questions going through his mind.

Once they parked, Andrews and Burton remained downstairs. Once again, Tony was in the lead. They reached the floor of Tim's apartment and down the hallway noticed something off.

"Probie, did you leave your door open?"

For the first time, McGee looked up. He narrowed his eye and pushed past Tony and Ziva, leaving all three trying to catch up to him.

He reached the door first and rushed in. "Jethro! Jethro! Jeth... oh ..."

Tony reached the door next, then Ziva both with guns drawn. They nodded to each other and entered the apartment, or rather what was left of it.

Books were ripped apart, records broken, screens shattered, clothes torn, nothing looked untouched. They found McGee in his kitchen, kneeling over the body of his dog. He was reaching out with a shaking hand, but stopped short of actually touching Jethro.

He balled his hand into a fist. "Son-of-a-bitch!" He hissed quietly. He stood, still looking at Jethro. "Son-of-a-bitch!" This time, he practically screamed it.

Ziva touched his arm. "McGee ..."

Tim grabbed her and swung her into Tony and Mike, sending them down like bowling pins. Then he ran out the door.

Ziva recovered first from the tangle of arms and legs and darted after McGee. By the time she caught up to him, he was on the street.

"I'm right here! Come and get me! ME! Stop going after others you coward! I'm right here!"

Ziva again grabbed his arm, but this time with force and managed to swing him around to her. "McGee stop this."

He jerked his arm back. "Leave me alone Ziva." He started to turn to leave, but Ziva grabbed hold again.

"Let go."

"I understand you are hurting ..."

"Understand! How could you possibly understand anything!"

"I will not let you run off to that man."

A crowd was starting to gather, looking at what they thought was a lover's quarrel.

"Why not?" Tim was still trying to pull himself free of her grasp.

"I am your friend, I will not ..."

"Friend? Since when?" Tim looked at her with disgust. "Who would ever want to be friends with the likes of _**you**_? We are co-workers, nothing more."

Ziva was shocked, at Tim for saying it and at her self for being hurt by it. When he pulled his arm back, she didn't stop him.

McGee turned and starting walking away, building into a jog. Andrews and Burton came running from behind Ziva trying to catch up. When they passed her, it snapped her out of the fog she was in and she too started running.

They were almost to him when a blur from a side ally tackled McGee. All three agents pulled their weapons.

"Stand down!"

Ziva recognized the voice before she did the man. "It is alright, that is US Marshal Strasser. He is with us."

As the NCIS agents re-holstered their weapons, Strasser was still struggling with Tim. He finally got him into a submissive position and wasted no time getting handcuffs on McGee. "Either you're stronger or I'm older."

Strasser stood, bringing McGee with him. "Settle down, you're not going anywhere now." Tim stilled. Strasser glared at Ziva. "What the hell were you doing standing there like a statue! Do you want that monster to get a hold of him?"

Ziva flushed, embarrassed and angry at herself. "No, of course not."

Strasser just shook his head as he started to march Tim back to the car, he address the growing crowd. "Nothing to see here, move along." He lowered his voice to address the agents. "Do you think you can at least handle this crowd?"

"Yes sir." The three said in unison.

~ End Flashback~

"I called you as soon as Ziva took off after McGee." Tony huffed out.

"What the hell is Strasser doing here anyway? Isn't he supposed to be working with Abby?" Gibbs glared at Mike.

Franks shrugged at him. "Guess he had a gut feeling. Good thing though, or else the kid would be long gone by now."

Gibbs narrowed his eyes even more and then looked at Ziva. "Are you going to be able to handle this?"

"Yes, Gibbs. I was surprised _**once**_. It will not happen again." Ziva had a determined look on her face, one Gibbs knew very well. Nothing Tim did now was going to phase her.

He looked at DiNozzo. "You?"

Tony let out a breath and took a moment to compose himself. "You better believe it!"

"What's eating at you?"

"Boss, ..."

"No. I need to know. Why are you so angry? Is it what Tim said to Ziva?"

"No, yes, it's ..." Gibbs just raised his eyebrow at him.

Tony let his frustration show. "We've been friends and partners for five years now. Five years! And he's totally tuning us out! Like he's scared of us, or doesn't trust us, or ..."

"Jeseeeeeeus, DiNozzo!" Franks looked at Gibbs. "Haven't you taught them anything?" He looked at all three of them. "Scared! Damn right he's scared, scared ya'll are going to end up like his dog in there!" Mike gestured towards the kitchen. "What did I tell you at the briefing! Weren't any of ya paying attention!"

They all stood quiet for a moment. Gibbs came to a decision. "He's staying with us."

"Probie ..."

"No!" It was the first time he ever raised his voice at Mike. "He belongs with us. He has lost enough already. I am _**not**_ letting that monster, or the threat of him, take anything else from Tim. Are we clear?" Gibbs bore a hole through Mike.

Mike knew the look he was being given. It was the same look Dan McGee had all those years ago when he was trying to convince the Captain to stay behind. _Aw, damn it to hell!_ "Fine." He had more to say, but shook his head and walked out.

Gibbs looked around the room and then back to his people. "Was anything spared?"

"No Gibbs, nothing. He even ruined the silverware and furniture: chairs, mattress and box springs, dressers, book shelves, everything. He left nothing for McGee."

Gibbs nodded to Ziva and started walking through the entire apartment. When he came to the bedroom, he saw on the wall right above what was left of Tim's bed, the hourglass symbol in what appeared to be dried blood. He stopped in his tracks, anger starting to get the best of him.

DiNozzo came from behind. "Yeah, we think it's Jethro's blood, since he couldn't exactly leave his mark in his usual way."

It was Gibbs turn to take a few calming breaths before speaking. "Get Ducky and another team in here."

"Boss ..."

"No, Tony. This time I want as much help as we can get. Plus ..." He turned to face his senior agent. "We are all going to need a protection detail."

"What?"

"If anything were to happen to any of us, I don't think Tim would ever recover." Gibbs waited as Tony digested what was said and then nodded.

"On it Boss." He turned to make the necessary calls.

"Ziva."

"Yes, Gibbs."

"I have a special project for you." He reached into his back pocket and pulled out his personal wallet, dug out his only credit card, and held it out to Ziva. "Go get Tim some new clothes."

"Why me? Is it because ..."

"It is because I can't leave him with just the clothes on his back. Besides, do you really want DiNozzo picking out new clothes for him ... or Abby?"

Ziva actually smirked. "I do not think McGee would look good in a dog collar." She took the offered card.

"Do you know his sizes."

"Of course. I know all of the team's."

Gibbs gave her a lifted eyebrow.

"I am observant, plus it come in handy for identification purposes."

Gibbs gave a smirk back and shook his head. "Alright. Take Agents Andrews and Burton with you."

Ziva started to protest, but realized what the protection was really for and nodded instead. "Of course Gibbs. I will return to your house as soon as I am done."

She walked out with a purpose in her stride.

If only it could all be fixed that easily. Gibbs shook his head at himself. He phoned Mike to make sure he didn't leave with Tim until Gibbs gave the okay. Mike grumbled about it, but agreed. Gibbs went to work on photographing while DiNozzo tagged until the back up team arrived.


	8. Chapter 8

WOW! You guys are amazing! I am so overwhelmed by your reviews. I wanted to respond to each of you personally, but my job is getting of the way of that (LOL).  
>Also, thank you to everyone who story alerted.<br>I hope you all enjoy!

Disclaimer: the usual - no money, don't own.

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><p>When Agent Girard's team arrived, Gibbs put DiNozzo in charge of the scene, but let Girard know that under no circumstances were Tony, Ducky or Jimmy to be left without an escort.<p>

Girard nodded and started directing his team.

Gibbs left knowing that the toughest part was coming, trying to get through to McGee. He reached the car and climbed in the passenger side. He silently nodded to Mike and the foursome drove off.

There was not a word said until the car reached Gibbs' driveway.

Strasser finally removed the handcuffs and slide out his door.

Gibbs also got out and opened McGee's door.

Mike was the first to speak. "Okay kid. Were back, time to get out of the car."

Tim, staring at his feet, shook his head.

"You ain't staying out here."

Another shake.

Franks was about to try a different approach, when Gibbs reached in the car and very gently grabbed Tim's elbow. "Come on son, let's get inside."

Tim allowed Gibbs to pull him out of the car. Gibbs never broke contact as they walked into the house. He guided Tim to the couch and made him lay down. He took off McGee's shoes and draped a knitted blanket over him. Gibbs knelt down and once again covered Tim's eyes. He talked in soft tones until he knew Tim was out.

Gibbs stood, stretched his legs and signaled the other two into the kitchen. He stayed where he could keep an eye on McGee.

"He reacts to you like he did Dan." Strasser said while sitting down at the kitchen table as Gibbs got coffee going.

Gibbs smiled briefly at that, until his other thoughts caught up with him. "So tell me ..." He turned around to face Mike, who was standing between him and Strasser. "... how did he end up with the McGees? He should have been ... I could tell Shannon really wanted him."

Mike sighed, he knew this conversation was coming ever since Fornell handed Gibbs that tape. "Her red hair fit her, she was quite the firecracker."

Gibbs just stared at him.

"Aw hell, Probie." Mike rubbed the back of his head. "She came storming into the waiting room, told us exactly what Tim was doing. Said if we felt that way, then she would take him right there and then." Mike dropped his arm and dug for his cigarettes. "Cindy and Dan were so shocked that they sat frozen for a moment." He found his pack and pulled one out. "Once they came to their senses, they flew out of that room to claim their boy."

Gibbs looked puzzled.

"I asked her why she bothered to say anything. She could of had him and none of us would have been any the wiser." He placed the cigarette in his mouth, then began searching for his matches. "She said he had already made a connection with the McGees and that it wouldn't be right to take that from him, _**if**_ they really cared about him too."

Gibbs knew his wife had been right. He too, could tell on that video how much Tim thought of the McGees. Still, he wouldn't have minded the addition to the family.

"Mike ..." Gibbs changed his mind on what he wanted to say. "... outside with that thing."

Franks chuckled and walked out the front door.

Gibbs turned back to the coffee.

"The McGees were really good for him." Strasser said as the coffee was poured.

"Yeah, I know. It's just ..." Gibbs was surprised at himself for almost admitting something to a stranger.

Hal smiled knowingly. "It's just he's a son anyone would be proud to call their own."

Gibbs turned to give the Marshal his cup and raised an eyebrow at the man's expression.

It was Hal's turn to chuckle. "When I came to start making the documents for them, well ... the kid pointed out a few mistakes and helped with the computer stuff." He shook his head. "That stuff still baffles me. Anyway, the kid was so polite and earnest about it, his smile lit up the room and his enthusiasm was contagious. You couldn't help but want him. Told Dan, if he changed his mind, to give me a call. He laughed, ruffled the kid's hair, said there was nothing that would make him give up his son."

"Is that why you're part of the case now?"

Hal shrugged. "I've got one more year before retirement. I was trying to keep myself out of any trouble, out of the field. But when I got the call about this, I knew there was no way I was going to sit back and let someone else take care of it." He eyed Gibbs. "Didn't even want you involved."

Gibbs bristled. "Why?"

Another shrug. "Your reputation. You like to do things your way and won't listen to reason." Hal took a sip of his coffee. "Dealing with Talbot is going to take everyone working together, and you don't play well with others." He glanced over to the sleeping figure, then back to Gibbs. "But the boy needs you."

"You figured that out from one time he listen to me?"

Hal shook his head. "It's more than that. He respects me and Franks, but you ..." He took another sip of his coffee. "... he trusts."

"All that because he got out of the car for me."

"I can't really explain it any better. I can tell that he places you very close to the same level of trust as he did Dan."

Gibbs wanted a better explanation, but moaning from the living room stopped the discussion. He put his untouched coffee down and went to Tim's side.

Hal watched as Gibbs talked McGee back to sleep. "Yup, he trusts you." He murmured to himself as he sipped at his coffee.

Franks came back in, watched the two for a moment, then joined Hal in the kitchen. He poured himself a cup and then sat down at the table with Hal.

"Do all you Marines drink terrible coffee?"

Mike smirked as he took a long drink from his own cup. "You realize things just got more complicated?"

"Yeah, we have another father to deal with."

Mike sat back and looked into the living room. "If you thought Dan was bad, you ain't seen nothing. Jethro is going to be vicious."

"Any more so than us?"

Franks turned back to Hal. "Oh yeah."

Hal shrugged. "Couldn't happen to a more deserving guy."

"So you with me that he doesn't get to walk away this time." Franks warily eyed Strasser.

"Absolutely."

The two drank their coffee in silence. Gibbs stayed out in the living room, calming McGee anytime his dreams started to disrupt his sleep.

XXXX

Gibbs let Tim sleep until the sun started to go down. He knew he needed to get McGee up for a couple of hours so that his sleep schedule wouldn't be throw too far off. He crouched down in front of the couch, making sure that when Tim opened his eyes, Gibbs would be the first thing he saw. He gave Tim a small shake. "Time to wake up."

McGee mumbled incoherently as his eyes fluttered open. He locked onto Gibbs' eyes and for a moment, in his still sleep addled mind, all was right with the world. Then reality came crashing back to him and he sat up in a panic.

"Easy Tim." Gibbs sat on the couch and put a hand on McGee's back. "You're back at my place. You're safe here."

McGee looked around, alarm growing on his face. Gibbs knew exactly what he was thinking.

"The team will be stopping by later, they each have a protection detail with them."

Tim stared at him as though he was assessing the truth of Gibbs' words. Usually, this would have made Gibbs a bit perturbed, but this time he understood. He just waited until he saw a small nod of Tim's head, knowing that meant he was believed.

"You read for some food?"

Tim shook his head.

"Listen, I know you don't feel like eating much, but you didn't have a lot this morning. Will you at least try if I put something in front of you?"

A shrug of shoulders was his only response.

Gibbs grabbed him by the elbow and they stood together. He directed Tim into the kitchen and sat him down at the table. Franks and Strasser were playing the card game 500. They had wanted poker, but Gibbs wasn't about to leave Tim's side, so they settled for something less thrilling.

"You want us to deal you in, kid?"

McGee shook his head at Mike.

"Don't you still owe him from last time Franks? Are you trying to have nothing to live on?" Strasser smirked.

"I bet he doesn't even remember how to play. Got all that computer stuff running around in his head."

They laughed and Tim gave a very small smile and shrugged.

Gibbs was preparing chicken soup, knowing the broth would be easy on Tim's stomach. He listened to the exchange and sighed. _I wish he would say something._

Franks and Strasser continued to throw barbs at each other, occasionally trying to bring Tim into the conversation. They didn't seemed phased by the non-verbal answers.

Gibbs placed the bowl of soup in front of Tim as the game was coming to a close.

"Ha! I win Franks!" Strasser held his hand out.

"No way! It's always best two out of three, right kid."

Again, a very small smile and a nod. Tim added oyster crackers from the bag that Gibbs had placed next to the soup bowl and started eating.

Gibbs was surprised, thinking he would have to instruct Tim to eat, like before. He looked at Franks, who just gave him a 'I know all' look.

Tim made it half-way through his soup, when the front door flew open. He dropped his spoon and stood up, looking ready to run and fight at the same time, while the other three went for their weapons.

"Boss?"

Gibbs put a hand on his shoulder to calm him. "It's okay Tim, just DiNozzo." He turned his head enough to face the living room. "In here!"

Tony came trotting in, wearing a plastered on smile. He stopped and his expression dropped when he saw the look on Tim's face. "What's wrong? Did something happen?"

"Yeah, you DiNozzo. You trying to get yourself shot?" When Tony gave Mike a puzzled look, he sighed and elaborated. "Could you make any more noise with that door?"

Tony actually blushed and rubbed the back of his head. "Yeah, sorry about that." He looked at his partner. "You know me, always have to make a grand entrance."

McGee gave a lopsided half grin, a nod, then sat back down to finish his food.

Tony, started to give his report, but Gibbs shot him a look that clearly said 'later'. He huffed and sat down at the now full table. "So what've you been up to Probie?"

Tim just shook his head.

Tony opened his mouth to say something, but was cut off by Strasser. "He's been refereeing between me and Franks here. He always cheats on card games."

"I do not! I can't help it you play bad!"

"Bad my ass!" Strasser grinned at DiNozzo. "You know how to play poker?"

"Of course."

"Good! Now we can play a real game." He looked at Tim. "No counting cards."

A shake of the head.

"Aw, come on. Don't you want to have the chance to beat the pants off your partner?"

DiNozzo gave a quick glance to Gibbs, who just shrugged. It seemed as though Tim was communicating in a code that only Strasser and Franks understood.

Tim shook his head again as he finished his soup and just sat there.

"Alright, if not poker then what? Don't tell me you'd rather play that Scrabble thing?" Mike offered.

A small shrug.

"Aw, that's not fair kid. I need spell check for three letter words, I can't go up against someone who can clear out all their tiles after the first round." Hal whined.

A ghost of a smile and another shrug.

Tony thought he was catching on. He decided to test his theory. "I bet the boss doesn't have any kind of board games. You want a movie instead?" Tony held his breath.

A shrug.

_Okay, maybe._ He went for something he knew Tim didn't like. "The Godfather?"

A shake.

"Hm, too serious. Although, you should watch them at some point, their classics."

A shrug.

"Okay, some other time. Okay, let me think ..."

"Don't hurt yourself, DiNozzo."

Tony glared at Mike, who just smirked.

"Mission Impossible?"

Shake.

"Too much like work?"

Nod.

Tony wracked his brain, trying to think of a movie that didn't have death in it somewhere. "A comedy?"

Shake.

"Romance?"

Shake.

"You're not making this easy Probie."

Shrug.

"Okay, okay. I can do this ... wait I know! How about National Treasure?"

Shrug.

"I think we have our winner!" Tony stood and clapped McGee on his back. "I'll make a movie run, maybe even pick up a board game or two and be back in a jiffy."

Tim looked up at Tony with worried eyes.

"Don't worry. I'll have my goon squad with me."

A raised eye brow.

Tony laughed. "Seriously. I'll be back before you know it."

Tim studied his partner for a moment and then nodded.

"Right." Tony nodded back and left, with a real smile this time.

Gibbs bit back a smile of his own, proud of his two boys. He looked over at Tim, who was still watching DiNozzo leave. He had a million questions, but decided to wait until he could talk to the two older men alone.


	9. Chapter 9

Disclaimer: I do not own NCIS or it's characters, just borrowing.

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><p>True to his word, Tony was back in less than an hour. Along with the movie, he also brought two games: Scrabble and Blockus. Tim seemed happy with the choices, as happy as he could be, and Scrabble was decided upon.<p>

Gibbs declined to play, rather enjoying watching Tim beat everyone. Abby, Ducky and Palmer came at the tail end of the first game, where Hal and Mike decided to give their spots to Abby and Ducky. On their third game, Gibbs pulled out his phone, he was getting worried about Ziva. She hadn't checked in yet.

~"David"~

"Where the hell are you?"

~"I am sorry Gibbs, it took longer than I expected. I am pulling on to your street now."~

He hung up and walked out his front door, listening to Tony and Abby argue over a word. He watched as the agency sedan pulled in, Agents Andrews and Burton got out first and cleared the area, only then did they let Ziva get out of the car.

She carried two bags with her, while the other two opened the trunk.

"What took so long?"

"The laundromat was busier than I expected for the middle of the week."

"Laundromat?"

"Yes. I bought the detergent McGee uses and also his cologne."

Gibbs gave a raised eyebrow.

Ziva had a soft smile. "So that some of the clothes could seem familiar to him." She held out one of the bags. "Start with this for tonight."

Gibbs took the bag and looked inside. He smiled and bent to give Ziva a kiss on the cheek. "Good job."

She beamed with the praise. "We will need help bringing in the rest."

Gibbs nodded and opened the door, just in time to hear Tony yell, "No way! You are _**not**_ using 'Qi', McGeek!" Followed by a round of laughter, minus one voice.

Ziva noticed the void. "How is he?"

Gibbs shook his head. "Hasn't said a word since he got here."

"But he is interacting with us?"

"So far."

"Then that is good." Ziva nodded to herself and walked into the kitchen. She laid the second bag she had been carrying down in front of McGee as she asked the others to help carry everything in.

McGee gave her a quizzical look. "We have your six, always." She kissed him on the top of his head and headed back out to the car.

Tim looked at Franks and Strasser. "Well, see what she got for ya." Mike prodded.

Tim reached in and pulled out a brand new hardback copy of 'Moonstone'. He opened the cover slowly, almost reverently, being careful not to break the back and started reading the story he knew by heart.

Mike and Hal looked at each other. "I guess you NCIS folks are alright after all."

Mike grinned back. "Been trying to tell you that for years."

XXXX

Gibbs instructed Agents Andrews and Burton to take the bags to his room, then headed out to the car.

"Did you buy the whole mall, Ziva?" DiNozzo complained as he took a hold of several more bags.

"I am a thrifty shopper." She handed some bags to Abby, who took two steps back to the house when she caught sight of Gibbs.

The facade she had been holding up for Tim's sake dropped and she started crying. As Gibbs, came closer, she dropped the bags and launched herself into him.

"Abby? What is it?"

She sobbed for a few moments before she found her voice. "Jethro's dead! I can't believe it!"

Tony and Ziva gave a sideways glance to each other, but said nothing as they continued to the house.

Gibbs sighed. _Of all the things for her to be upset about._ "Abby ..."

"I mean I tried so hard to save him ... and then made McGee take him ... I thought he was safe ... that ..."

Gibbs had a flash of anger and pulled Abby from him. "Are you blaming Tim for Jethro's death?"

Abby looked at him. She knew how her words sounded, it was coming out all wrong. "I ... I ..." She started sobbing again. "It's not fair! Who kills someone's dog? Didn't he take enough from Timmy? He doesn't deserve any of this!"

Gibbs pulled her back into a hug and let her cry it out. He realized how hard she had tried to not cry in front of Tim and that she was jumbling her words and emotions.

Ducky and Jimmy had also come out to help. Ducky came from the side and laid a supportive hand on Abby's arm. "Jethro was protecting their home, my dear."

Abby wiped at her eyes. "I know." She looked up to Gibbs. "He got in a few good bites before ..." She swallowed hard, trying not to cry again.

Gibbs raised an eyebrow to Ducky.

"I found some flesh between Jethro's teeth. He tried very hard to fight his attacker, there was even blood on his nails."

"I'm running DNA." Now that she had gotten it out of her system, Abby was able to concentrate on the technical aspects. "I don't know if Talbot's would be in the system, but it will be now. Plus, running his profile against Tim's so we can to exclude him."

Now Gibbs turned a questioning face to Abby.

"Not only is Tim's DNA going to be everywhere, but there could be some from the dog walker, his apartment manager, any repair-people, heck maybe even the team. Knowing the exact profile of his father will help us compare and eliminate."

Gibbs gave her a kiss to her hair. "Good thinking."

Andrews, Burton, Tony and Ziva were heading back out. "This should be our last trip Gibbs."

He nodded to Ziva. Abby gave him a quick hug and picked up the bags she had dropped. Gibbs took them and nodded towards the car. She gave him a quick kiss to the cheek and joined Tony and Ziva at the car. "You should have told me you were going shopping, I could have helped."

"There was no time to tell you, besides, you were busy with all the evidence we were bringing to you."

Abby let out a long sigh. "Yeah, well maybe next time."

"I don't think McGee will need to go shopping for awhile."

"Sure he will Tony."

"Abby, I think Ziva bought Probie enough."

Abby and Ziva looked at each other and smiled.

Tony just shook his head.

Once they were all back in side, they went to Gibbs' room to get everything organized.

The non-clothes items consisted of pop-up closet and fold-out drawers, along with the cologne, shampoo, body wash, and shaving cream McGee always used.

Once they had everything hung up and put away, Gibbs sent them all downstairs. He went into the kitchen and found Tim still reading. He walked over to McGee and placed a hand on his shoulder. "Alright, bedtime."

Tim furrowed his brow at him.

Gibbs actually chuckled. "I know, you've only been up for a few hours, but trust me, you want to try to keep close to a normal schedule."

Tim nodded, closed the book and went upstairs to shower and get ready for bed. Gibbs had set out clothes in the bathroom for him, the ones Ziva handed to him in the bag. Tim looked at them and gave a wistful smile. It was an MIT shirt and lounge pants in blue and gray plaid, very closely matching the shirt's colors.

When he got in the shower, he smiled a little stronger, seeing his own shampoo and body wash. He didn't rush in the shower, going over everything that had happened in the past two days. The fear was starting to ebb to anger. _Damn him! Damn him to hell! I know he will start to go after the team next. I have to stop him. I will NOT let him hurt anyone else._

He was still formulating a plan when he finally got out of the shower. He put on the night clothes and had to smile again. It felt like it had been washed a hundred times and it smelled like it had always belonged to him.

"_We have your six, always."_ Ziva's words came back to him, along with everything that the whole team had been doing for him. It solidified his resolve to protect them, no matter what. He knew he would have to push them away, have to make them mad, so mad they would let him go.

He gave a wince as he thought about it. He didn't really want to hurt any of them, but better that than ending up dead. Tim sighed and stepped out of the bathroom, to find Gibbs waiting for him.

Gibbs looked him up and down. _Damn, he looks so young._

McGee warily eyed him back. He steeled himself and walked to the bed.

"Just so you know, there is an agent outside this window."

Tim turned and glared at Gibbs.

"Don't give me that. Franks has filled us in on what you're probably thinking. I'm here to let you know, it ain't happening. You are not going to be getting anywhere near that ... near Talbot. Do I make myself clear?"

Tim plopped down onto the bed, threw the sheet over himself and turned away from Gibbs.

"Oh, you can be as mad at me as you want." Gibbs walked over and sat down on the bed. "It isn't going to change the facts. You will not be anywhere by yourself. If I can't be with you, then Franks or Strasser will be." He didn't get a response, not that he was expecting one. He patted Tim on the leg. "You don't have to fight this alone."

This time, he did wait for a response, when he got none, he stood to let Tim sleep. Gibbs turned off the light and leaned against the door frame, just watching. There was so much he wanted to tell his agent, but knew he would have to wait until Talbot was out of the way. He stood for a few more minutes, then went downstairs.

XXXX

When Gibbs came downstairs, he noticed that the group had migrated to the living room. Now, it was time for some answers. "So, you two wanna tell me what the silent treatment was all about?"

Mike and Hal exchanged a look. Strasser shrugged. Franks turned to the group. "That's the way he was when Dan caught him. Remember how I said he wouldn't talk."

"It must be a coping mechanism." Ducky offered.

"That or he's thinking, which is dangerous." Strasser added.

"That's what I always tell him."

"DiNozzo, do you always have to be an ass?" Franks growled at him.

Tony looked hurt by the accusation, then got angry. He stood from the chair he was sitting on, but before he could say anything they would regret, Gibbs took over the conversation. "Franks, that's enough."

"Probie ..."

Gibbs shook his head. "Listen, I know that you guys want to protect Tim. What you have to realize that we all do too ... even Tony." He gave a grin to his senior agent.

Tony gave a nod back and sat down again.

Strasser seemed amused by the power play going on. He knew Franks would never admit how close he came to taking Tim as a child. He shook his head at himself, then focused back on the conversation at hand. "How smart do you think the kid is?"

Abby looked at him puzzled. "He's near genius level."

"Oh, is that what you think?" Now that he had everyone's attention, Hal revealed another piece of this complex puzzle. "You see Talbot wanted his boy smart. From every victim he wouldn't just take a memento, he'd also take the cash and one credit card. The cash for obvious reasons. But with the credit card he would buy just one book, then throw the card away. JR could never figure out why. The books were always text books: math, science, spelling, literature." He paused to take a sip of his drink.

"By the time we caught Talbot the books were at high school level if I remember correctly." He took a moment to look at the group. "You see, he had Tim on a very strict learning schedule. He would even stop torturing someone if it was 'class time'."

Everyone was stunned. Ducky broke the silence. "I'm surprised that Timothy excelled at learning, then. One would think it would be a horrible reminder of his time with his ... with Talbot."

Mike picked up the narrative. "It was just the opposite. Tim knew Talbot would stop hurting people as long as he was teaching, so the kid tried to learn as much as possible. Although, it had to been a genuine interest, if Talbot figured out he was pretending ... well, let's just say he was disciplined very, very harshly."

While Mike started searching for his cigarettes, Hal took over again. "Yeah, well, it didn't hurt that the kid had a love of learning. After Talbot was in custody, Tim asked if he could still keep his books. He was heartbroken when we told him he couldn't, being evidence and all."

Having found them again, Mike put one in his mouth. "So the first thing Dan got for the kid was a book ... a novel actually, ... 'Moonstone'." He looked approvingly to Ziva.

She blushed at the significance of the meaning of his look and at the realization of her act of friendship.

Gibbs nodded his approval.

"He couldn't get enough of them. Those detective novels. No wonder he ended up being one." Hal continued. "He can probably look at a crime scene from three different points of view."

"Yeah, we know Timmy is really, really smart. What are you getting at?" Abby hadn't forgotten the comment that started the conversation.

"He was given one of those IQ tests when they were trying to figure out what grade to put him in. He gave it his all, just the once, came back in the 200 range."

Abby's jaw dropped open. "No way! He ... he ..."

"They, the teachers, wanted to put him into this advanced program that would take him away from Cindy and Dan. Got MENSA involved, and everything. We had to get a court order to have them leave the kid alone. I changed his scores and he learned how to 'dumb down' when taking any type of intelligence test." Hal gave with a half-grin, then turned serious. "So, now do you understand how dangerous it is for him to be thinking? He's coming up with a dozen or more ways to get a way from us."

"In order to protect us."

"Very good David, yes, in order to protect us." Mike said as he removed the cigarette.

"So the games and stuff ..." Tony had wondered why these two hard-asses had agreed to play a board game.

"Was to keep him somewhat occupied. Give him something to challenge him, and he will get completely absorbed." Mike grabbed his book of matches and headed to the front door.

The group was silent as they digested this new piece of information. It was Tony who finally broke the spell. "I guess I can really call him McGenius now."

Ziva snorted. "Like you haven't before."

"Well, yeah, but now it will be different."

"No it won't." Abby added playfully. "Although, I bet you'll have to try harder to come up with some better McNicknames."

"Hey! I don't have to try, they just roll off my tongue. It's a gift."

"Anything that would come from your tongue can, in no way, be considered a gift." Ziva looked at Abby and the two women started laughing.

"Hey!" Tony crossed his arms and pouted. "That's not what you said when ... OUCH!" He rubbed his head where both of the girls had slapped him.

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><p>AN - The highest IQ I could find was Marilyn von Savant, 190. So I figured on using 'around 200', that way it could be above, or it could be below. Although, I think Tim would be much more eccentric if he was that smart. Also, I don't know if MENSA would ever get really that forceful about getting someone, probably not, but it fit for what I was trying to portray. My apologies to any MENSA people - I meant no disrespect.

Again, thank you all for your wonderful reviews! They make my day!


	10. Chapter 10

You guys are the best! I am so humbled by the responses. I won't blabber to much just ... thank you.

Disclaimer: I do not own any part of NCIS and am not receiving any monetary benefit.

* * *

><p>Gibbs followed Franks out onto the front porch. He still had questions he wanted answered.<p>

They stood in silence for a few minutes just watching cars go by. Gibbs turned to look at his long time friend and mentor. "You need to ease up on DiNozzo."

Mike took a long drag. "Boy's always joking around."

"It's just his way. Don't let it fool you, he's going to protect Tim as much as you. We all are."

Mike gave a small shrug. The two men continued to look straight ahead. "That's not what you really wanted to talk to me about."

"You knew who Shannon was when you got the case?"

"I never knew her full name, confidentiality bullshit, but when I saw the picture ... yeah, I knew who she was." Mike kept looking straight ahead.

"Why didn't you say anything?"

"What should I have said, Probie? 'Hi. I was there when your wife almost adopted a killer's son.' You didn't need to know."

"Didn't need to know! I could ..."

Mike turned to look at him. "Could have what? Tim was happy with the McGees and you were grieving. What possible good would have come from me telling you how close you were to having a second child?"

Deep down Gibbs knew he was right. There was no way he was in any shape to take care of anyone but himself during that dark time, and it wouldn't have been fair to Tim to try to uproot him from a family he loved. Gibbs sighed and looked away from Franks.

"Fine. But afterwards, after the first time you knew he was on my team, you coulda said something then."

"Again, for what good? Tim never knew who she was to you. It would've only hurt the both of ya. No need to open old wounds."

"He never knew?"

"Only knew her as 'Miss Shannon'. You ever show him a picture?"

Gibbs shook his head. Even after everyone found out about his family, he still kept his memories of them very guarded.

"Then he has no reason to connect her to you. Best to leave it that way."

Gibbs turned to look at his friend again. "Why?"

Franks put out his cigarette looked back out to the street. Gibbs could tell he was debating something with himself and it sent Gibbs gut churning. Franks just shook his head. "Just leave it."

"Mike ..."

Franks turned back to him again. "No. Don't go opening old wounds to cause new ones."

"What the hell are you talking about?"

"Hasn't he been through enough?"

"Well, yeah Mike. I wasn't planning on tell him right this minute, but once Talbot is ... out of the way, I thought he would want to know."

Mike shook his head. "Nope. You want him to know so that you can put your claim on him."

Gibbs fought very hard not to react to the truth of Mike's statement. "He is going to need a family."

"Still has a family. He doesn't need to become a Gibbs for that. I'm telling ya, leave it be."

Gibbs furrowed his brows. "What's going on? What aren't you telling me?"

"Nothing that has to do with Talbot."

"Shouldn't I be the judge of that, since this is my case."

Mike turned towards the front door. "It's a joint case, and don't you think after all these years, I know what is or isn't pertinent to a case?"

Gibbs wanted to protest more, but Franks opened the door and went back inside, ending the discussion. He watched the night street life for a while before Ducky joined him.

"Is everything alright Jethro?"

Gibbs shook his head. "This is such a mess Ducky."

Dr. Mallard put a supporting hand on his colleague's arm and joined him watching the nightlife, waiting. He could tell Gibbs was dissecting whatever new information Franks had given him.

"There's more going on here."

"Franks tell you that?"

"No, just the opposite, Duck. I ..." Gibbs shook his head at himself. "I don't know, maybe I'm making something out of nothing."

"Follow your instincts Jethro, they have never failed you before."

Gibbs nodded. "You staying?"

"Oh, heavens, no. I don't think you have enough room for all of us. Besides, I need to get back to Mother. However, Mr. Palmer will be with me, along with our protection. We should be fine."

"Better be."

Ducky gave a sad smile to his friend. "We will not be caught unaware."

The unfinished, _Like the McGees were_, bounced around both men's heads.

Palmer came out a few moments later. "Oh, I'm sorry. Are you ready Dr. Mallard?"

"Quite ready, Mr. Palmer." Ducky and Gibbs exchanged nods. Then Ducky left with his charge and two agents in tow.

Gibbs stayed on the porch mulling over what Mike had said. _Mike is keeping something from me. I trust him if he says it has nothing to do with the case, but after it is done with, he, McGee and I are going to have a very long talk._

The door opened again to reveal Tony, Ziva, and Abby, also leaving for the night.

Gibbs raised an eyebrow at them, thinking he would be tripping over everyone in the morning.

Tony explained, "I don't think Mike and I can take much more of each other tonight." He let out a huff.

Gibbs smirked, but it was Abby who answered. "Don't mind him too much, Tony. He's just being protective."

"Yeah, well, he's not the only one. It's like he thinks he has dibs on McGee since he knew him first. He might have know him as a kid, but we know him, now, as an adult, an agent, as ..."

"A friend." Ziva finished for him. She looked at Gibbs. "We also believe it would be better for McGee if he didn't have too much of an audience tonight."

"Nightmares?"

"Yeah. I thought we could help, but Tony and Ziva think he would be embarrassed, which I know they're right. I don't have to like it though."

Gibbs pulled Abby into a hug. "We don't have to like any part of this. As long as we are there to support McGee ... whether he wants it or not."

The four smiled at each other.

"So what are the protection arrangements?"

"We thought it would be easier if we all stayed at one place with just one detail, instead of three at different locations."

"Good thinking DiNozzo. Whose place?"

"Mine for tonight." Tony allowed himself a grin. "I haven't had two girls stay over in awhile."

Ziva glared at him. "Get you mind out of the sewer."

"Gutter, Ziva."

"Regardless, nothing will be happening." She turned to face Gibbs. "I will protect Abby's virtue."

"Oh, and who's going to protect yours?" Tony said with a wag of his eyebrows.

"Only me ... and my stack of paperclips."

Tony's color drain from his face and he shook his head at himself. "What have I gotten myself into?" He turned to Gibbs. "Maybe we should stay?"

Ziva gave a predatory smile. "No, it has been decided. Let us go." She gave a nod to Gibbs and started walking towards the car.

Abby gave another quick squeeze to Gibbs and followed after Ziva.

Team leader and senior agent exchanged knowing looks. "Don't worry Boss, I'll keep them safe."

"You too."

Tony chuckled. "Yeah, me too. Night Boss."

"Night, Tony." Gibbs watched as he walked to the car, with Andrews and Burton beside him. DiNozzo squeezed into the back with the girls and the car drove off.

It took another hour before Gibbs was ready to go back inside.

XXXX

The next morning was a quiet affair. Tim was up and got ready on his own. He shook his head at the fact that someone, probably Gibbs, had selected an outfit and laid it out for him. Part of him was grateful since he hadn't look through all the stuff Ziva had bought, another part was annoyed at being treated like a child. He wanted to hold onto the grateful part, but knew he needed the annoyed part more, so that was the feeling he grabbed onto.

When he came downstairs, the three older men were already at the kitchen table. He sat down and a plate of food appeared in front of him. He glared at Gibbs. Gibbs glared back. The unstoppable force meeting the unmovable object. Tim finally relented and started eating his pancakes.

Gibbs smirked behind him to Franks and Strasser. The two older men, bit back smiles.

Not a word was said until all four were in the car.

Gibbs could tell McGee was working up to something, so he waited. By the time they reached the main thoroughfare, Tim found his voice. "I want to see him."

"Who?"

"Jethro."

"Are you sure?"

Tim, still glared, but nodded.

"Alright. Mike, take us in through the garage, when we get to the Yard." He made a mental note that McGee had asked to see his dog, but not his family.

"Will do."

The rest of the drive was made in silence.

XXXX

When they got to the Navy Yard, Gibbs dismissed the protection detail with instructions on when to be back. The foursome entered in through the garage and went straight to autopsy. They met Ducky and Palmer along the way.

When they reach their destination, McGee stopped before entering. Gibbs put a hand on his shoulder. "Are you still sure you want to do this?"

McGee shrugged his hand off of him. "I'm not a child." He strode into autopsy, almost cocky.

Ducky gave a questioning look to Gibbs who shrugged, shook his head and then entered autopsy.

"Which one?" McGee was standing facing the drawers, he did not turn around to address the group.

Ducky was taken aback by the cold tone to McGee's voice. "107."

McGee gave a soft snort. "Guess that drawer is reserved for 'special guests'."

"What was that Timothy?"

"Nothing. Can I get some privacy?" He was still facing away from them.

"Of course. Gentlemen, there is actually something that I do have to go over with you." Ducky gestured them to his office.

Mike voice a concern as they followed Ducky. "Should we really be leaving him alone?"

"Don't worry Mike. Leon made sure everyone in the building knows that Tim can't be anywhere by himself. If he even tries it, the building will go into lock down." Gibbs filled them in as they settled around the small desk.

Gibbs, although trying to sound not-concerned, didn't fool anyone when he stood in the door way so that he could keep an ear on Tim.


	11. Chapter 11

Oh good, I've got you all curious. Guess that means you'll have to keep reading! LOL!  
>Anyway, Thanks again to everyone. I'm so honored.<p>

Disclaimer: Just borrowing, do not own anything - not making any money - etc.

* * *

><p>Once everyone had left, Tim let his attitude slip. He took a deep breath and let it out slowly. He walked over to the drawer and slowly opened it. There was his faithful companion, eyes glassy and milky, fur matted with blood.<p>

Tim closed his eyes and took another deep breath. When he opened them, he reached out and started petting his friend. "I'm sorry, Jethro. Abby gave you to me thinking you'd be safe, so don't be mad at her okay. None of this is her fault."

Surprisingly, there were no tears. Even Tim wasn't sure why he hadn't cried yet. He knew he needed too, but so much had to be done first. At the start, he thought it was just going to be about making funeral arrangements, then it became an investigation to find their killer, now it was a manhunt for an evil that should have never seen the light of day again.

"When you see Kate in heaven, tell her I said 'Hi'. Although, make sure you give her a better greeting than when we first met."

He heard the door swish open and he let his hand drop, but he didn't turn around to face whoever came in.

"Oh, Timmy, um, hi. I didn't know you were here yet." Abby came to stand behind McGee. She wanted to show him, he wasn't alone, but she didn't want to do anything that would accidentally make him feel worse. She looked at Jethro. "Come to say goodbye, huh?"

"No."

"What?"

"Gibbs is making me do this. I don't really care. I never wanted the stupid dog. He attacked me, remember. But you didn't care. You were more worried about him than you ever were about me."

Abby was stung by his words, but remembering what Franks said, she tried not to react to them.

"Nothing to say? Never thought I'd see the day when Abby Sciuto ran out of words." His tone becoming harsher.

Abby closed her eyes and took a deep breath, before responding. "It happens sometimes."

McGee scoffed at that. "Whatever."

An awkward silence fell between them. Not sure what to say, Abby said the first thing that came to mind. "It's okay to miss him."

"I don't. I told you, I don't care. In fact ..." He finally turned around to look at her, a cold and sneering look on his face. "In fact, I'm glad he's dead."

"What? You don't mean that." Abby was having a hard time not reacting to McGee. _He never lies, but ... this has to be a lie, right? When Mike said he would say anything to push us away, I didn't think he would lie, I just thought ..._ Her thoughts were cut short by Tim's next statement.

"Do I ever lie?" He looked at her with such disdain, that she could hardly recognize her friend. "I was getting ready to put him down, he was such a pain in the ass. Glad my old man did it for me."

"What?" Abby couldn't stop herself, she started crying. "Timmy, please, don't ..."

"I'M NOT A CHILD! Don't call me by that stupid name!" He knew if he did this just right, it would be a two for one. Get Abby upset enough and Gibbs was sure to kick him to the curb.

She reached out for him, but he swatted her hand away. "Why are you even here? Oh, that's right the dog." He slapped himself on the forehead. "Because, he's always been sooo much more important than a dumb geek."

"T-that's not true! I ..."

McGee wagged his finger at her. "Bad Abby, no lying."

Abby brought her hands to her mouth, realizing what he was referring to.

"Doesn't feel good, does it?" He leered at her.

She couldn't take any more, she turned around and ran out of autopsy.

Tim had a momentary flash of regret and would have let his pretense fall, but he heard footsteps behind him. He wouldn't face any of them.

Gibbs had left Ducky's office as soon as he heard McGee's raised voice. He stood back to see how it would play out. When Abby left in tears, he sighed. Mike gave him a hard 'I told you so' look. Gibbs gestured for him to go after her while he took care of Tim. He shooed Hal, Ducky and Jimmy back to the office.

Tim watched Franks walk out the door and felt Gibbs come up beside him. He waited for the yelling or the head slap, or something, but Gibbs remained silent.

Gibbs knew, if he waited long enough, Tim would say something. After about five minutes, he got what he had been waiting for.

"Why are you here?"

"I figured you could use the support."

Tim chuckled. "I'm fine. Everyone thinks I can't handle this. 'Poor McGee, to soft for this line of work, ready to fall apart at the drop of a hat.' Well, I hate to break it to everyone, I'm stronger than that."

"I know you are Tim."

McGee chanced a glance to Gibbs, wondering why he was getting this instead of being reamed out. _Maybe Gibbs doesn't know what I've done._ "I made Abby cry."

"I know."

McGee rounded on him. "Then why are you standing here!"

Gibbs was going to respond, but Tim didn't give him the chance.

"She's your favorite, right? Abby, who-can-do-no-wrong, replacement-for-your-dead-daughter, Sciuto is out there crying, but you're in here with me! I'm always responsible for her actions and the one time I actually do something, you don't go after her! I don't understand! When Mikel broke into my apartment, that was my fault because _**she**_ opened the door! When she got stuck in that car, it was my fault because I was _**doing my job**_! When Landon went after her, it was my fault because _**he**_ couldn't tell the difference between fact and fiction! When ..."

Gibbs had hear enough. "McGee ..."

Tim knew that tone, he had pushed Gibbs to his limit. He now was waiting for a slap, a punch, some form of violence. When Gibbs pulled him into a hug, Tim was completely thrown. "What ... what are ..." He struggled against Gibbs.

"Tim, all those times, Abby needed me more than you. I might have taken my frustration out on you, but it was never meant to be directed to you personally. I should have told you before." Gibbs, usually quick to anger, found himself feeling more sad than anything. "I know you think you have to push us away to protect us, but you don't. I promise that I will not let Talbot hurt you anymore."

Tim sagged for a moment needing the verbal and physical reassurance, feeling for a brief moment safe, just like when Dan would hold him. Then he realized what he was allowing to happen and he pushed Gibbs away. "You can't make that promise! I know him! I'm his son for christ's sake!"

Gibbs just shook his head at McGee.

He knew he needed another approach, so he tried for logic. "Okay, so you're going to protect me from him?"

"Damn right."

"So am I worth Abby's life?"

"What?"

"Because, that's what it's going to come down to. A choice, either me or her. So choose, Gibbs. Right now. Who would you rather have alive. Me or her?"

"Tim ..."

"No! I'm serious. Right now, he has a gun on both me and Abby. He gives you the choice to save just one of us, who would you pick?"

"I could never ..."

"YES YOU CAN! You're a Marine! You've had to make decisions like that all the time! So which is it! Who would you rather still be breathing tomorrow?"

"A father could never choose between his children. I would find a way to save you both, or die trying."

Gibb's soft words echoed through Tim's head. Dan had said something similar once, a long time ago. He could feel his anger and resolve slipping. He felt drained. He looked at Gibbs, now pleadingly. "You always chose Abby. She's your favorite. Why aren't you choosing her now?"

Gibbs stepped close and again pulled McGee into a hug.

"Choose Abby. Please, I would. I'm not worth her life. Please."

Gibbs felt all of the fight leave McGee's body. "I refuse to trade one life for another. Never have, never will."

"Please Boss, choose Abby."

Gibbs rubbed Tim's back as he kept pleading. "No, Tim. I will protect you all. Tony, Ziva, Abby, and you."

Tim couldn't take anymore and his legs buckled. Gibbs' hold tightened. "Easy, Tim, easy."

Ducky, who had not returned to his office, came from the corner which he was standing, pulling a chair with him. He placed it right under McGee.

Gibbs saw what Ducky had done and lowered Tim into the chair. By the time he was sitting, he was back to being silent and withdrawn, a shell-shocked look on his face.

Ducky gave him a once over, then beckoned Gibbs to the corner.

Gibbs shook his head, he still had a hand on McGee's shoulder and didn't want to leave him.

Ducky waved Palmer into the room, who came in blushing from ear to ear. "Will you keep an eye on Timothy while I talk to Jethro?"

"Yes, of course Dr. Mallard." He walked over to Gibbs and gave a slight nod.

Reluctantly, Gibbs left Tim's side. "What is it Duck?"

"Did he eat much the morning?"

"No, about one pancake an half a piece of toast. Why?"

"Has he grieved any?"

"No. Ducky, please, what's wrong?"

"Jethro, I don't how much more of this that young man can take. His vitals are all over the place."

Gibbs rubbed his hand over his face. "What are you saying?"

"That if he doesn't find a release soon, he could end up in the hospital."

Gibbs closed his eyes and let out a breath he didn't realize he was holding. "What do I do?"

Ducky sighed. "See if you can get him talking, really talking. I think you, more than anyone, can."

"I'll try, but I can't force him if he's not ready."

"I know, but ..." Ducky shook his head. "We are just going to need to keep a close eye on him."

"As opposed to what?"

Ducky allowed himself a ghost of a smile and a slight chuckle. "Quiet right. What is your plan?"

"For now? I'm just going to get him to the bull-pen and see if I can give him a normal day."

"What about the case? I know that you haven't yet received our update from the findings at Timothy's apartment."

Now, Gibbs gave a smirk. "That's why there's two floors to the bull-pen."

"Very well. And Abigail?"

"Mike's taking care of her."

"Jethro ..."

"No, Ducky. What I said to Tim was the truth. He needs me now more than she does. I get that she's upset, but he's just had his life torn apart. I will get to her later."

Dr. Mallard knew there would be no more to say on the subject. He also knew that he would be speaking to Abby very soon, to offer her the support that she was used to getting from Gibbs. He nodded. "Alright then."

The two men walked back into the main room. Jimmy had pulled up a chair next to Tim. He was talking a mile a minute about his latest classes, his mom, his family, anywhere that his thoughts took him.

Gibbs walked over and once again, pulled Tim up by his elbow. "Come on McGee, let's get to work."

"Sure, Boss." Tim's voice was barely above a whisper, but it brought a small smile to Gibbs. He knew from that simple statement, that he was actually getting through to McGee ... slowly, but surely.

XXXX

Mike strode out of autopsy, expecting to find Abby bawling, instead she was trying to calm herself and dry her eyes.

"Hey, girly."

She jumped at his voice and turned to Mike. "Oh, hey there." She turned back to the elevator.

They waited in silence. Once inside, surprisingly it was Mike who started the conversation. "What was that all about?"

"I ..." She paused as tears came back to her eyes. "I've been so mean to him."

"What?" That wasn't anything close to what he was expecting.

"He's such a good guy. Always puts other's needs ahead of his own, even ... even a dog's." She wiped at her eyes.

Franks felt bad for her, knowing how hard she was trying not to break down. He reached out an pulled her into a hug. "Go ahead darln' let it out."

She didn't need to be told twice. Once she got started the tears and the words came fast. "I ... I remembered what you said ... how he would say anything ... to push us away ... I just ... never thought he would lie ... because Timmy ... Tim never lies ... but this time he did ... said he was glad Jethro was dead ... he looked so mean ... if it weren't for the look ... in his eyes ... I might have ... fallen for it ... but then ... then he said I cared ... more ... more about Jethro than ... I did him ... called me 'Bad Abby' ... just like I did ... to him." She cried into Mike's shoulder.

Mike stroked her back while she cried and babbled. He realized she was more upset with herself, for how she had treated McGee in the past. "Aw, hell. He'll lie, mix in the truth, take something he felt for a moment and blow it out of proportion, anything to make sure we stay safe. Even if he ends up alone in the end."

Abby was finally calming down. "That's no good. He deserves better." She pulled back from Mike. "He may have lost one family, but he still has us, no matter what. Bad attitude or not, we won't let him face this alone."

"Good girl." He gave her an encouraging smile, which she returned.

Abby gave him a hug. "You're almost as good as Gibbs."

"Almost?" He gave with a half smirk.

Her smiled faded. "He stayed with Tim, didn't he?"

"Abby ..."

"No, it's fine. He needs Gibbs." She pulled back and wiped her eyes, again.

The elevator opened on Abby's lab level. She sighed and squared her shoulders. "Work. Yup, work. They all deserve everything that I can find with my 'babies'."

Mike nodded at her and let the elevator doors close.


	12. Chapter 12

WOW! You guys really liked that last chapter. As you can tell, I am not a big fan of Abby ... at least not the way she treats Tim. I like her otherwise, but when it comes to him, she really treats him badly ... and it's still on going. You'd think by now he'd matter more to her & she wouldn't take him for granted. It'd be nice to see her (& maybe the rest of the team) get a wake-up call.

I'm ranting ... sorry.

Anyway - you know the drill - I do not own nor am I making any mullah (although, I wish!)

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><p>Once they reached the bull-pen, Gibbs directed McGee to his desk and didn't remove his hand until Tim was sitting down.<p>

He could see the questions on the rest of his team's faces, so he gave them a glare and gestured to Agent Brooks to come over.

"Tim, Brooks' team has taken over the Lonsert case. You give him a hand with that while I go talk to Tony and Ziva."

"Sure Boss." Tim still had a far away look and sound to him.

Gibbs and Brooks exchanged looks. Brooks nodded his understanding and turned to McGee. "We've actually got a lead. A little used hallway had a security camera that everyone forgot about. We've been waiting for cyber-crimes to clean it up for us. Will you take a look at it Agent McGee?"

Tim looked first to Gibbs, who nodded his approval, then to Brooks. "Of course Agent Brooks, is the footage still downstairs?"

"Nope, I've got it right here." He handed the tape over. As McGee qued the tape and Brooks bent down to bring him up speed on what they found, Gibbs signaled for the other two to follow him.

They were surprised when they headed up the stairs instead of into the elevator.

"Boss?"

"This way I can keep an eye on him DiNozzo."

"Is it a good idea for him to even be here, Gibbs?"

"I'm not leaving him alone, Ziva, even with Franks. Besides, as safe as my house is, NCIS is better." He turned to face them once they reached the upper platform. "He needs a reminder of who he really is and what his life is about. He can get that here better than anywhere else."

Tony and Ziva exchanged looks. They knew Gibbs was right and nodded their understanding.

"What've you got?"

Tony started. "Several neighbors positively identified Talbot. He was walking around asking for his son. Gave a perfect description of McGee. They said he was so nice and polite, enough so that the maintenance guy let him into Tim's apartment." Tony shook his head. "That was Wednesday morning Boss. If Tim wouldn't have found out about his family ..."

They all looked at each other realizing that if Tim would have went home that night, Talbot would have been there waiting for him. The possibilities of what could have happened to their friend filled them with dread.

Gibbs cleared his head and got back on track. "No one thought it was strange all the noise coming from the apartment?"

"Nope, apparently the apartment building is full of people who work during the day. Everyone around Tim's place wouldn't have been home until late evening."

"What about the dog?"

"Tim has a dog walker that gets him early, has a key to the apartment. She said she thought it was strange that Jethro had started growling and didn't want to go back into Tim's but once she got him inside, he seemed to settle down, so she just left. Fortunately for her, who knows what Talbot would have done to her if she'd stuck around."

Again, they were silent, all knowing there was one person who would have known exactly what would have happen to anyone crossing Tablot's path.

Gibbs glanced down at Tim. He was working away at his computer with Brooks sitting on the edge of his desk, watching.

"Do we have any idea how Talbot broke out?"

"It was a well planned escape. In fact, several inmates are involved. They are being brought here for questioning." Ziva answered.

"Why would they help him but stay behind?" Tony questioned.

"Every psycho has fans."

They all turned to Strasser as he came out of the elevator. "Him especially, had to beat them away with a stick ... literally. You should have seen his trial, what a circus." He shook his head in disgust.

"What can you tell us?"

Strasser looked at Gibbs. "I followed the trail. Wanted to make sure the kid was kept out of it. It was hard. Talbot kept demanding to see his son." Hal gave a grin full of malice. "You should have seen his face when the prosecutor said he didn't have a son and to stop playing with the courts. That was a moment I relished."

Ziva looked at him questioningly. "How did the courts not know he had a son. Even if he was placed into the Witness ..." her voice trailed off as she remembered what Hal revealed to them yesterday.

Strasser nodded at Ziva. "Yup. When I said all traces of Talbot's son disappeared, I meant all. That was another reason we decided not to put him into the Program. No paper trail, no computer trail, nothing."

"So you are the only one who knows the fake history you gave to McGee." Ziva stated.

Strasser shrugged. "Not exactly." He looked at Gibbs and gave a small smirk. "Remember, I had trouble with the computer stuff, so it turned into a group effort. Dan and Cindy told me everywhere they'd lived, any hospital they might have used, nearby schools, so on. What they didn't know, me and Mike helped fill in. The kid, well he helped put it all together. Even picked his birthday, year and everything."

"What?" Tony asked in surprise.

"He didn't know what it actually was. We had no way to search hospital records since we had no starting point. Tim's estimated age was between eight and ten." Hal chuckled. "Dan and Cindy wanted to make him eight so that he could take the time to just be a kid. He wanted to be ten so that he could be a grown up quicker. They, um, _**discussed**_ it for days. The kid won."

"Are you telling me he could be one to two years younger than we think?" Gibbs asked. He knew McGee was the youngest agent the agency had ever had, maybe younger than any of them ever realized.

Hal smiled. "Yup."

"Why would ..."

"Because, little lady, Tim wanted to be a protector. Wanted so badly to be the opposite of Talbot and instead follow in Dan's footsteps." Hal sighed. "It crushed him when he realized he couldn't."

"Why ... ah, the seasickness." Tony made the connection.

"Yeah. Poor kid, he was depressed for a long while. Trying to direct him to other parts of the Armed Forces didn't seem to help. Franks made a special trip to see him, gave him the idea about joining NIS. Once he had a goal, nothing could stop him."

Gibbs thought back, it was a about a year after he the team, that Franks left suddenly for a few days. When asked, all he would say was that it was a recruiting trip, but he smiled like a Cheshire cat.

Gibbs shook his head. "Okay, back on track. Those fans you mentioned ..."

"Right, right. Sorry. Groupies, was more like it. He got fan mail. Men and women lined up to profess his innocence, or that he was an artist, or that he was a god and we mere mortals couldn't begin to understand his ways. Bunch of kooks if you ask me. We kept an eye on all of them, anyone that seemed to present a real threat was taken care of."

"What about any new ones?"

"I don't know Agent DiNozzo. Everything is so complicated these days." He shook his head, sighed and grabbed the back of his neck. "He was offered a book and movie deal, both of which he turned down."

"Really?"

"Yeah. That surprised all of us, someone like him usually wants all kind of attention, a platform to share his ideas or accomplishments. All he was interested in was finding his son. The authors and directors wouldn't agree to include someone there was no evidence of. The only writing done about him was by psychologists and FBI profilers. The shrinks thought he was 'projecting himself' as a child. The profilers, well they guess it was more, chalked it up to a child that had been lost in child birth or some such."

"I remember reading the profile." They all turned as Dr. Mallard now joined them. "It is why they believed he killed families, to take something that had been taken from him." He shook his head. "I wonder how the professionals would feel if they knew they had it all wrong? How is he doing, Jethro?"

This time, they all looked down to McGee. Right now, he seemed his normal self, lost in trying to pick apart evidence. An intense look on his face, but one they were all familiar with. Gibbs looked at Ducky and smiled slightly. "Doing okay Duck."

"Yes, I see that. Good, good." Ducky also gave a small smile as he watched McGee work.

"Ducky, did you need something?"

He turned back to Gibbs. "I had to deliver some more samples to Abigail and decided trek up here to give you my autopsy findings. The three McGees died Saturday, around 1300 our time. Single gunshot to the head, no sign of sexual assault on any of them. Although, it seems Sarah had more to celebrate with her family than just her book signing." A sad look came over his face and he once again looked down at Tim.

Gibbs gut balled up on him. "What are you saying?"

"She was eight weeks pregnant." He turned to look back at the team. "Besides what I found, in her personal belongings there was an ultrasound picture of the child and a note from the father-to-be." His eyes were becoming bleary with tears. "It tells of his intention to be a good husband and father."

Ziva narrowed her eyes. "No one has contacted us."

"Why would he? Tim wasn't supposed to be getting back until today. If she wanted to tell her family alone, then he may not have been expecting her to contact him until now." Tony added as the realization of what all his friend had lost hit him.

Gibbs sighed and rubbed the bridge of his nose. _This just keeps getting worse and worse._ "We'll have to find some way to contact him without letting Tim know. He doesn't need to know what else he's lost."

"No need for that, Agent Gibbs." Vance joined the group.

"What do you mean."

"A body was found yesterday in the woods by the resort where the McGees were heading." He handed a folder to Gibbs. "Petty Officer Erion Hedgecraft. His CO said he asked to take emergency leave. When he asked him why, he said his girl was pregnant and he needed to go make it right with her family. To, I quote, 'Handle it the way her big brother would want me to.' Said he was grinning ear to ear, so he let him go."

Gibbs looked at the photos of the body, finding the one that had an up-close of the Petty Officer's hand. "Damn it, it was him." Gibbs showed the picture to the group, the hand had the same mark they were becoming all too familiar with.

"Has his family been notified?" Gibbs asked, hoping to find some way to keep Tim out of the loop.

Vance shook his head. "Has no family. Grew-up in foster homes until he was old enough to enlist. His listed next of kin was his CO and Sarah."

"Boss ..."

"No Tony." Remembering Ducky's warning from earlier, Gibbs laid down the law. "I don't know how much more Tim can take right now. He hears nothing of this case. Everything goes through me first. Understood."

"What if he asks?"

"Then head him my way, Director."

"I know you're just trying to protect the boy, but do you really think it's a good idea to keep him out of the loop?"

Before Gibbs could answer Strasser, Ducky spoke up. "Timothy has not had anytime to grieve for his family. As, far as I know, he has shown no emotion, what so ever. I believe that he thinks that he needs to be strong right now, for his family and for us. The more we add on his plate, the more he will repress, and I worry that it will endanger his health." He paused and gave each of them a stern look. "Please, follow Jethro's instructions."

They all nodded in agreement.

"The prisoners will be here in an hour, Gibbs." Ziva informed the group.

"Good, how many are there?"

"Four so far."

Gibbs gave a smile that held no warmth. "One for each of us then."

"There's only three of us, Boss."

"Can't leave out Fornell, DiNozzo."

"Aw, here I thought you were going to let me in on it, Probie." Mike joined the same way Ducky and Strasser had.

"Not this time Mike." Gibbs turned to him. "At least not at first."

The two former partners grinned at each other.

Vance looked at them and then shook his head. "Just don't do anything that would jeopardize the case against Talbot. No loopholes."

Gibbs faced him. "No. Of course not, Director."

Vance gave him a hard look. He knew Gibbs was going to stretch the rules on this one. Stretch, but would he actually break them? Vance was afraid he knew the answer all to well. "Just keep me in the loop." He gave one last look, then went back to his office.

"Alright, we have one hour to get ready. Makes sure we have background bio's on each of these guys." He looked at Ziva for his next statement. "Bring your best, just make sure it stays with in legal limits ... for now."

Ziva grinned at Gibbs. "For now."

He turned to the older agents. "I want you two in observation. We're going to be doing this as musical chairs so you can pick who you want to watch."

"Just let me have a few moments to look at each one before you start your blitz, Probie." Mike held up a hand before the protest could start. "From behind the glass."

Gibbs narrowed his eyes. "Why?"

"I want to get a feel for each one before I choose which one to enjoy the show with."

Gibbs had his doubts, but nodded anyway. He turned back to everyone else. "Let's go."

As Tony and Ziva went back down the stairs, Gibbs gave a quick glance to Ducky. He nodded his understanding, and followed the older agents to the elevator, inviting them down for a 'sip of tea' while they waited.

Gibbs watched the elevator close on the three men, knowing Ducky would keep an eye on them. His gut was still churning. Something wasn't right, but Gibbs just couldn't put his finger on it. He had a vague feeling that this was going to still get worse before Talbot was caught.

_How much worse can this whole situation possibly get?_ Gibbs refused to answer his own question.


	13. Chapter 13

Ah ... the plot starts to unravel ... or does it? Let's see who picks up on the clue I left ...

Disclaimer: I do not own any part of NCIS ... except the DVD's LOL!

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><p>Gibbs came into the bull-pen and walked over to McGee and Brooks. "How's it going?"<p>

"McGee thinks he has something, a face. Trying to clean it up, but it's only in the frame for a moment and the closer he tries to get, the less detail there is."

Gibbs came around the other side of McGee's desk and took his usual stance, bent over with one hand on the desk and one on the back of the chair.

"See, right here Boss." Tim pointed the very right edge of the screen.

Gibbs repressed a smirk. _Now that's the Timothy McGee I know._ "Yeah, the half of a face."

"Yeah, but ... I don't know ... doesn't he kinda look familiar?"

Gibbs squinted. His eye sight was supposedly bad, but for a former sniper bad eye sight is still equivalent to above 20/20. "He does."

"He does? I'm right?"

Gibbs reached up and did something that he hadn't done in a long time, he ruffled Tim's hair. "Of course you are."

Tim allowed himself a small smile that quickly turned sad as he remember Dan McGee doing the same to him. He pushed that thought away for now. "I just can't place from where. Although ..."

"What, Agent McGee?"

Tim looked at Brooks. "If he's familiar to Gibbs too, then that means we have both seen him, that can actually narrow things down a bit."

"Really how?"

"Well, since I've been here at headquarters for five years, that gives us a time frame to look at."

"No offense, but does it really? I mean you could have seen this guy at Norfolk and Gibbs could have seen him while there. Or, he could be military and the three of you just crossed paths, or he could have been at FLETC, ..."

"But it's a place to start Brooks." McGee looked up at him. "I know that in the five years I have been here, Gibbs and I have come across a lot of people, but it is a start." He turned back to his computer, keying in a few things. "Abby has the facial recognition program I need. Boss?"

"Yeah, sure go." This time, Gibbs couldn't hid his smile as Tim got up and strode to the inner elevators with purpose.

"Listen, I'm all about letting someone run with a lead, but do you really think this is going to get us anywhere?"

Gibbs turned to Brooks. "Don't discount my ... agent, Shane. Let him follow his idea. It's worked out for us many of times." Gibbs kept his expression neutral and hoped he covered his almost calling Tim his son, instead of his agent, well enough.

If Brooks caught it, he didn't call Gibbs on it. "Alright, for now. It's not like there's anything else to go on. Besides, I've seen him work wonders for your cases, think he'll mind a transfer?"

The tone may have been light, but Gibbs wasn't about to let someone think they had a snowball's chance in hell of getting anyone from his team. "No way, he belongs to me. Has ever since the day ... he was promoted to field agent." Almost another slip-up. _Damn! I've got to get it together. I don't want everyone knowing about him and Shannon before I can even talk to Tim about it._

Brooks laughed. "I know, I know. Hey, can't blame a guy for trying. He's a special one, your agent is. Not too many with that kind of skill on computers actual want to be field agents." He sighed and shook his head, taking the tape back to his desk to discuss the possible finding with his team.

XXXX

An hour later Gibbs walked into one of the observation rooms. Both Franks and Strasser were there.

"Take this one Probie."

"Why Mike?"

Strasser answered. "This is one of those kooks I was telling you about."

Gibbs looked at the file in his hand and at the prisoner. "Jason Altemare."

"Yeah, I remember him. He was one of the ones who thought Talbot was a god. Had him placed in a psyche ward for awhile, but since he hadn't committed a crime yet, he wasn't able to stay there for long. Doesn't surprise me he ended up in jail."

Gibbs read over the file, nodded and then went to conduct his interrogation.

XXXX

Instead of entering in his usual fashion, he opened the door quietly, placed a bottle of water by Jason, sat down and just studied him.

Jason looked almost just like anyone you would met on the street. Short for a guy, five-five, average looks, sandy blond hair, but it was his eyes that would scare most away. They were a simple brown, but the mania was clearly reflected in them.

Gibbs just waited, he could tell Jason was waiting to tell someone his part, it didn't take long. "I bet you want to know why we helped Talbot?"

"Nope, already know."

"So you know about his son?"

"Maybe."

A horrid smile spread across Jason's face. "He knew it! They took him away! Probably used him for experiments thinking no one would care what happened to a prisoner's son!"

"Is that what you think?"

"Oh yes! Talbot is a visionary, that's why he was jailed! I was more than happy to help him!"

"So ... what's this son's name?"

The smile began to fade. "What? I ... that was not for me to know."

"But you believe that this 'son' exists."

"Yes."

"This son, with no name."

The smile left completely. "You're trying to confuse me."

"No, that's what Talbot did. There has never been any evidence that a son ever existed. If he was real, don't you think Talbot would have said his name at least once."

"His son is a very special person, only those who are worthy can know it."

"So, you're not worthy."

Confusion danced across Jason's face. "Stop it! You ... you're just trying to turn me against Talbot!"

"Talbot escapes, leaves you holding the bag. He's out doing what ever he wants and your stuck with an even longer sentence."

"I ... you ... he ..."

"Just tell me who else is involved."

"Why should I?"

"If you cooperate, I can see about getting your sentence reduced back down."

"You think I'd turn on Talbot so easy! I won't! You think you're so smart! Well, he's smarter!"

Gibbs went opened his mouth to respond, but his cell phone rang. With a frown, he answered it. "What have I told you ..." A grin spread across his face. "Good to know." Gibbs started gathering the file and stood to leave.

"What are you doing?"

"I don't need you any more. The other three: Steve, Tyler and Joe have all turned state's evidence. Seems you were the mastermind behind it all. Planned everything and the only reason you aren't out there running around with Talbot is that you tripped during the escape."

"What? That's ... it didn't happen that way!"

"Sorry, you had your chance, they squealed first. Good luck with that extra long sentence, I think you're up to life now." Gibbs got to the door and started to pulled it open.

"NO! It was all his plan! Talbot's, got the guy from the other prison to plan it all, we ... we just did what we were told." Jason's voice got quieter and smaller as he talked.

"What other guy?"

"I don't know."

Gibbs yanked the door open.

"REALLY! I don't know. Said this guy was the one who found his son. Said he had a plan for getting Talbot out."

"Doesn't do me much good if I don't know who he is." Gibbs let the door close and turned back to Jason.

"I was never told who he was, just that he was coordinating everything from his side. He was the one who was going to get Talbot's son back."

"How'd they communicate?"

"Computer ... in code."

"What's the code?"

"I ..."

"That's fine, I'm sure one of the other three will tell me."

"No, wait. I ... I need a piece of paper and a pencil."

Gibbs studied Jason for a moment, nodded and gave Jason the supplies.

He scribble on the paper, then handed the it over to Gibbs.

First = last  
>second = fourth<br>third = second  
>last = five prime<p>

"Okay, what's it mean?"

Jason sighed. "In all the communications, Talbot would only pay attention to the sentences that were fifteen words long. The hidden info was in four word combinations, apply that code and you'll able to see exactly what was hidden."

Gibbs frowned, code cracking wasn't his strong suite. "Give me a for instance."

Jason took the paper back, wrote a sentence, underlining certain words, then handed back to Gibbs, who read it out loud. "John has a family where the daughter is dead and the son cannot be found."

Jason nodded. "Now apply the code. The first word is the last word in the sentence: found. The second word is the fourth: family. Next, third equals second: has. And finally, last is the fifth prime number, the eleventh word: son. So what Talbot gets is: Found family has son. See?"

Gibbs stared at the paper, seeing how easily a bland e-mail could hold so much terrible information. "Who came up with this?"

"Dunno. I just know that we all were given the code so that way we could receive e-mails too. Sometimes it took all of us receiving one and then getting together latter to combine what we had to form a complete thought or instruction." Jason sighed and lowered his head in defeat.

"Who is it?"

"I told you, I don't know!" Jason ran his hands through his hair.

"What is the name of the sender?" Gibbs wasn't very familiar with the computer stuff, but even he knew all e-mails had a sender name.

Jason was holding his head, debating with himself if he should say any more. This time, Gibbs just stayed silent, knowing that Jason would eventually tell him.

"HypnoWatch2B."

Gibbs smirked, nodded and got up. When he reached the door, Jason spoke in a small voice. "So ... I gave you good info, right? Better than the other three."

"I don't know what the others have or haven't said."

"What? But ... but you said ... your phone ..."

"Oh that. That was just some alarm I can't shut off. All my people know not to not to interrupt me during an interrogation."

Jason just stared as Gibbs exited and closed the door behind him.

XXXX

In the hall, Gibbs was met by Franks and Strasser. Franks grinned at him. "Not bad Probie."

Gibbs snicker back. "Come on. Let's get to Abby's lab."

"I think I'll hang back and watch the other interrogations. See if all you NCIS people are as amusing." Strasser smiled as he turned and walked into a different observation room.

Gibbs shook his head and Franks shrugged.

"He's interesting."

"As much as you are, Probie."

Gibbs jerked his head towards the elevator. "Come on."

The two former partner smiled at themselves, thinking they had finally had a way to end this for the young man that meant so much to all of them.


	14. Chapter 14

I have to admit - I was nervous about the last chapter. I wasn't sure if I got the interrogation right, and I was racking my brain trying to come up with some believable code. I almost left it out so that I could finish the story. Thank you all for your wonderful reviews - I'm glad I got it right!

On with the story! The usual disclaimer: I own nothing & not making any money.

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><p>When they walked into the lab, it was a much more subdued atmosphere than usual. Abby had her music on, but at a very low level. She and Tim were in two different rooms of the lab. Abby, in the main room, kept taking quick looks at Tim and wiping her eyes.<p>

"Abby ..." Gibbs said softly.

She whirled around and faced the older gentlemen. "Oh, hey Gibbs. I ... I don't really have anything for you."

"I know. I have something for you." He walked over and handed her the paper from Jason Altemare, explaining the code he was given. "I want you to look through all of their e-mails, looking for this HypnoWatch2B."

"Okay Gibbs."

"Remember to it only works for sentences that are fifteen words long."

"Okay Gibbs."

He could tell that she wanted to talk, he knew he would need to, but right now his only focus was McGee. He looked around Abby to the other lab. "How's he been?"

"He won't speak to me. Came in and told me what he needed to do, then shut himself in there." Abby bit her lip and wrung her hands. "Gibbs, I ..." She stopped and lowered her gaze.

He felt bad for her, he really did, but Tim needed him more right now. He looked at Franks, jerked his head towards Abby and walked to the doorway to check on Tim.

The door whooshed open and Gibbs just leaned against the door frame, watching. McGee was wearing a scowl, he would type a little, stop look at his results, and would type again. "How's it going?"

McGee didn't even glance up. "Slow. I'm trying to clean it up pixel by pixel, but it seems like when I get one cleaned up, the ones I just fixed go all wonky on me."

"Wonky?"

Tim gave a quick glance and a quirk of a smile to Gibbs. "It's a very technical term."

Gibbs smirk also. "I'm sure. I think it's time for a break."

"Boss ..."

"No Tim. I don't want your eyes going crossed from staring at that stuff."

McGee went to respond that it had never bothered Gibbs in the past, but realized that Gibbs was in full hovering mode and he wouldn't win that argument. Instead he just nodded, set his program to keep working on the pixels the best it could on its own, stood and stretched.

"Wow. I'm more stiff than I realized."

Gibbs smiled and jerked his head towards the door. "Come on, lunch is on me."

"Boss, you don't have to do that."

"Do you have a favorite place nearby? If not, I have a great little diner I could take us."

Tim shook his head. "Sure, boss, I'd like to try someplace new."

They walked out, Tim just a step behind Gibbs. They both headed straight for the outer door. Both also ignoring the fact that Abby was watching them intently.

Just as Gibbs was going to walk out the door, Abby blurted out, "He's not your father!"

Gibbs and McGee turned to her as one and stared, both thinking she was referring to the two of them. Gibbs was instantly angry. "Abby ..."

"Talbot, he's not your father."

It was as if everyone was frozen. Nobody moved or said a word. Never one comfortable with tense silence, Abby continued. "I ran the DNA caught in Jethro's teeth. There's no match."

"Then it was someone else in my apartment." Tim said in a soft, distant but disbelieving voice.

Abby nervously looked between McGee and Gibbs, still wringing her hands. "No, it was Talbot. He was in a prison fight a couple of years ago and needed surgery, the prison decided at that time to register his DNA." She reached back to her keyboard, hit a key, and two DNA profiles came up on her screen. "The DNA in Jethro's teeth is a 100% match, however when I compare it to yours, it's not even close. He's not your father, brother, uncle, cousin, anything."

Gibbs was stunned, he chanced a glance at Tim. He was staring at Abby with horrified eyes, barley taking a breath. Remembering Ducky's earlier warning, he tried to put an end to this. "Abs ..."

Too nervous to stop herself, she reached back again and hit another key. "But I think I know who your parents really are." A couple popped up on her screen replacing the DNA profiles. "This is Hunter and Gillian Herring ..." Hunter had a friendly face, mousy brown hair and hazel eyes framed by wire rimmed glasses. Gillian had auburn hair and deep brown eyes, her face radiated happiness.

Tim's eyes shifted from Abby to the picture causing very distant and vague memories start to stir.

"Abby ..." Gibbs could see the color starting to drain from Tim's face and needed her to stop, now.

"... and this is their son, Timothy." Not understanding the warning in Gibbs tone, she once again, hit a key and the picture zoomed out. The couple was holding a child, angelic blond hair that was starting to turn brown at the roots, soon to match Hunter's; a happy smile matching Gillian's; and bright sparkling green eyes.

Images started flashing through Tim's mind. Being lifted and spun by a laughing man ... a woman laughing as he stood covered in flour ... a beautiful garden covered in blood. As the memories rose to the surface, so did the bile as his stomach churned.

"They were killed by Talbot in 1984, their four-year-old son's body was never found. The FBI just figured the body was dumped somewhere else because Talbot had done that before." Abby was sure that Tim would be happy to find out Tablot wasn't really his father, so she couldn't understand why he looked so horrified. She tried to lighten the mood and gave a shaky smile. "I guess Cindy McGee was right, you always were a Timothy."

"Abby, enough!" Gibbs growled.

Abby's face fell and she went back to wringing her hands, not understanding what was going on. "Tim, I ..."

Tim's eyes never left the screen. Memories flooded him, of the couple in front of him, of Talbot, of the McGees. It was too much. His hands were going numb, his legs were starting to shake, a rumble came from low in Tim's throat. He turned and ran out of the lab, not even realizing that he pushed past Gibbs in his effort to make it to a bathroom.

Gibbs was so angry and worried. Usually he reacted on his anger, but this time worry won out. He shot a look at Abby that clearly said _'We will talk about his later.'_, and ran after Tim.

As soon as Gibbs left, Abby burst into tears and turned to Mike. "I don't understand! I thought he'd be happy! I just wanted to make him happy!"

Mike sighed, walked forward and embraced her. "I know, darlin', I know."

"Then why ..."

"You just told him everything he ever thought about himself was wrong. And ..." He waited for Abby to look up at him. "... you added another family for him to feel responsible for."

"Oh, Mike! I didn't mean too! I just ... I just ..." She hid her head in his shoulder and cried.

Mike rubbed her back. "I know. But from now on, anything dealing with Talbot goes through one of us first. Okay."

Abby nodded into his shoulder, crying too hard to respond.

Mike continued to rub her back as he looked at the lab door, worrying about Tim.

XXXX

Tony shifted from foot to foot, tugged at his coat, adjusted his tie, ran his hands through his hair and repeated, again and again.

"Tony! If you do not quit fudgeting, you are going to throw the elevator off its track."

"Fidgeting." He gave a sideways glance to Ziva. "Something about this is making my Spidey sense tingle."

"Another one of your movies?"

Tony shrugged. "I can't put my finger on it. Something they've said seems like they gave us the smoking gun, but ..."

"But?"

"I don't know Ziva. I'm missing context, relevance, setting, just something."

Ziva was going to give a smart-ass answer, but the elevator door opened and they both saw Gibbs run by. They gave each other a worried sideways glance before running after him.

They all slowed down when they reached the men's room. Gibbs paused, he gave a quick look over his shoulder to the other members of his team. He gave a quick gesture with his hands letting them know that he wanted them to guard the door. When he received two silent nods, he took a deep breath and entered the bathroom. As the door closed behind him, he could hear the sounds of retching and crying.

Agent Andrews happened to be the in the bathroom before McGee come running in and was standing outside the stall Tim had collapsed into. Andrews looked at Gibbs with a worried face.

Gibbs jerked his head towards the door, letting Andrews know that he would take care of McGee. Andrews glanced once more at Tim and then quickly left.

Gibbs waited until the door closed again before he moved. He could tell that Tim was now at the dry heaving point. He could also hear that Tim was having trouble catching his breath. On pure instinct, Gibbs grabbed a couple of paper towels and ran them under the faucet. Once they were damp, he quickly went into the bathroom stall.

He squatted down, placed one hand on Tim's back and with the other wiped Tim's face with the cool towels. "Easy son. Calm down. Easy. Come on, you need to breath." Gibbs kept his voice quiet and calm.

Tim's dry heaving started to slow down, but the tears did not. He managed to lift his head enough to look at Gibbs.

When Gibbs saw the look of pure loss it took Gibbs' breath away. He did the only thing a parent could do with a child in so much pain. He reached out and pulled Tim close, sliding down the stall until he was sitting on the floor.

Tim grabbed onto Gibbs' shirt, buried his face and cried - that turned into sobbing - that turned into wailing. He was finally letting out all of his bottled up emotions.

Again, on instinct, Gibbs started rocking slightly and singing. Low and soft, so that only Tim could hear him. It was a song his grandmother had sung to him on nights when storms raged while he was visiting their farm. It was the song his mother had sung to him on the first night in a new house each time the family had moved until they settled in Still Water. It was the song he taught to his wife and sung to his daughter before each deployment. It was the song he had watch his wife sing to a distraught little boy.

Outside, Tony and Ziva heard McGee's mourning cries. Both wanted to rush in to help, but were stuck in place with the enormity of his emotions. They stood guard, shooing away anyone who even looked at the bathroom.

After ten minutes, the wailing quieted. After another five, it was eerily quiet. They exchanged looks, wondering what they should do. Ten more minutes passed, with nothing coming from the bathroom. Tony opened his mouth to suggest they go in, when his phone rang.

He saw that it was Gibbs, and answered quickly. "Yeah, Boss?" He looked at his phone when he heard nothing. He was still looking at it when it rang again. Tony answered after the first ring, but still got dead air. Realizing what was being asked of him, he tentatively opened the bathroom door and walked in, Ziva following right behind.

He was about to call out when he saw McGee's legs sticking out from the first stall. He walked over and peered inside. He saw McGee had cried himself out to exhaustion, wrapped safely in Gibbs arms, face buried and hidden. Gibbs face, however, said it all: pain, anger, loss, frustration, anguish. Not knowing what to do, Tony just stood there staring.

Gibbs looked up and schooled his features, knowing he needed to take charge. He mouthed the words 'Can you lift him?'

DiNozzo nodded and squatted down. Ziva rushed out of the bathroom and he looked over his shoulder wondering what was up with her. He brought his focus back to the two in front of him when he received a head-slap.

First order of business was to ease McGee's hand that was fisted in Gibbs' shirt. Even though Tim was out cold, he still had a death grip on the shirt. Tony started messaging Tim's hand and gently prying his fingers loose. Once the hand was free, he lifted Tim's arm over his head and draped it across his own shoulders. After lifting Tim the other day, he knew exactly how much force to use.

The movement did nothing to stir Tim. Tony gave a worried look to him and then down to Gibbs.

Gibbs had slowly leveraged himself upright, working the tingling out of his legs and butt. He refused to admit to himself how quickly his extremities had gone to sleep and how old that made him feel. He saw Tony was holding McGee securely and would be fine until they tried to move the unconscious man, so he kept working on his legs.

A sound from the door drew their attention, but neither man could move. Ziva appeared at the door of the stall, with a wheeled computer chair. The men smirked at each other.

Ziva brought the chair right up to McGee's legs and Tony lowered him down, placing a protective and steadying hand on Tim's shoulder.

Still in silence, Tony and Ziva looked at Gibbs, who gave them an approving nod. Ziva stood behind Tim and, being shorter, wrapped her arm around his upper chest. She gave a small jerk to her head, and in sync, she and Tony carefully wheeled Tim out of the bathroom.

Gibbs took a careful step, making sure his legs were ready to hold him. Even in the mist of all this bad, he had to smile to himself in pride at his team. Without a word spoken, they knew exactly what he wanted of them and what to do to help their teammate. He knew they would all make sure that Tim got through this.


	15. Chapter 15

When I was responding to everyone about why Tim wasn't anything like Talbot, I so wanted to say what I was planning. But, I felt it would take away from the 'big reveal'. I'm very happy about the way it turned out ... and you seem too, as well. Thanks again for all the reviews!

Disclaimer: I do not own any part of NCIS, nor am I making any cash from this story (oh, but I do wish!).

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><p>By the time he had made his way back to the lab, Tony and Ziva had McGee laid out on Abby's futon in the inner lab. In the main lab, Abby was still wrapped in Mike's arms, refusing to look at any of them.<p>

As Tony and Ziva gave confused looks, Gibbs made his way to Tim. He took off his jacket, folded into a pillow, and placed it under Tim's head. Gibbs stood just watching him rest, until DiNozzo walked up behind him.

"Boss, what's going on?"

Gibbs turned his attention back to his team, looked at DiNozzo, then over to Abby. "Fill them in."

Abby shook her head in Mike's chest.

"Come on darlin'. You know this stuff better than any of us."

Abby sniffed and nodded. She turned to everyone and, while watching the floor, repeated everything.

Tony and Ziva reacted the same way the rest of them had, with stunned silence.

"That makes no sense. Why would a killer like Talbot keep anyone alive? He has killed children before, why keep one alive?" Ziva finally questioned.

"I'll be sure to ask him before I kill him." Gibbs growled out.

Abby was shocked that Gibbs saying something like that. It seemed to go against everything he stood for. "Gibbs ..."

Tony interrupted her, "God! How much more can Probie take!" He ran his hands through his hair and started pacing. Thinking of how he would feel if he were in Tim's position. "This is it, right? Is there anything else he could lose?"

"Us." Abby said in a small voice, that stopped DiNozzo in his tracks.

"Never! We shall always stay by his side."

Abby slowly shook her head. "That's not what I meant, Ziva."

Mike sighed. "But she's right." He took a moment to look at all of them. "You all better take your protection seriously. If you thought it was bad before, any loss now ... Well, the kid would be destroyed."

They all fell silent again, however, Gibbs anger was growing. "We're getting side tracked. None of this is helping us find Talbot. Abby, get back on those e-mails."

She nodded and finally detangled herself from Mike and started the process of getting access to the inmates' e-mail accounts.

"I wonder why fifteen?" Tony mused to fill the void.

Abby turned to answer him. "That's how old he was at the time of his first kill, ..."

"His brother."

They all turned to Gibbs. "Yeah Bossman, how did you ..." Abby shook her head. "You're you, of course you knew that."

Gibbs smirked with the small return to normalcy and relieving some of the tension in the room. "Alright, you two, get back to the squad room, and start going over our interrogations. If you find anything, no matter how small, follow it."

"Yes, Boss."

"Yes, Gibbs."

Tony and Ziva turned to leave the lab, when Gibbs called out. "And, Tony, tell Brooks that Tim isn't going to be helping for a while."

Tony nodded, then he and Ziva left.

Gibbs turned to Mike. "You keep an eye on him. I'm going to go get Ducky."

"You got it Probie." Franks gruffed back.

Gibbs took one last look towards the room McGee was resting, then left.

XXXX

Gibbs walked into autopsy and collapsed into the closest chair.

Ducky and Jimmy, not hearing the door open, were finishing the last of the paperwork on the McGees. Jimmy sighed deeply. "This is just terrible."

"I know, lad."

"I mean, I never knew his family, didn't met Sarah when she was here, but even I knew how much she meant to him. To lose them like this ..."

"He's lost so much more."

Both jumped at the sound of Gibbs' voice. They turned to look at him. Ducky became concerned instantly. He had never seen Gibbs radiate loss and defeat before, not even when Caitlin or Jenny were lost. He calmly walked over to his long time friend and placed a supportive hand on his shoulder. "What is it Jethro? Did Timothy find out about Sarah?"

Gibbs shook his head, then rubbed the bridge of his nose.

"Good lord, what has happened now?"

Gibbs took a deep breath and explained what Abby had found.

Ducky and Jimmy reacted with the stunned silence that had been hitting everyone.

Gibbs slumped under Ducky's hand, feeling the weight of this case and the fall out it was bringing.

"Jethro ... I ... is Abigail sure?"

"Yeah, she told us she triple checked everything."

"I guess that's why she wanted all those samples." Jimmy added quietly.

Ducky gave a quick glance to his young assistant. "Yes, Jimmy, I suppose you're correct. I thought it was strange she kept requesting more samples." He turned his attention back to Gibbs. "How did Timothy react?"

"How do you think?" Anger colored his voice, which to Ducky, meant that the fight was coming back to Gibbs. He was glad to hear it.

"He ran to the bathroom and threw up what little he ate, crying the whole time. He could barely catch his breath." He finally looked up and met Ducky's gaze. "He finally let it all out, but at what cost?" Gibbs ran his hands through his hair and sprung out of the chair. "Damn it!"

Dr. Mallard let Gibbs pace for a while, knowing he needed to get this out of his system before he could be of help to McGee. He waited until Gibbs slowed down and finally spoke to the younger man. "I think I should look that young man over. Are you ready to go back, Jethro?"

"Damn right."

Ducky struggled to contain his smirk. "Mr. Palmer, keep an eye on our shop until I return."

"Yes, of course Dr. Mallard." Jimmy was still processing everything his friend was going through and knew he would be no good for Tim right now. He was relieved that Ducky decided to let him stay behind, although, he felt a little ashamed of himself at the same time.

Once the two older gentlemen left, Jimmy let a sigh out. "Get it together Palmer. If you feel this bad, imagine how Tim feels." He walked over the drawers that held McGee's family. He didn't open them, but he did put a hand on the door that housed Sarah's body. "We'll watch over him, I promise. We'll do you proud."

Jimmy straighten and squared his shoulders. "Right!" He nodded to himself and went back to work.

XXXX

Franks stayed by Abby's side, giving her a supportive hug or squeeze to her arm when he noticed her start slow down on her searching. She would pause enough to re-center herself and give a small lift of the corners of her mouth to Franks, guilt still weighing on her.

About fifteen minutes later, Franks noticed the top of McGee's head show for a moment, then disappear again. He walked over the door and took a look at McGee.

He was still sitting on the futon; knees up, head resting on them; arms wrapped around under his thighs; hands tightly gripping his elbows. He looked so young.

Mike just shook his head and walked over to Tim. He squatted down and place a hand on McGee's shoulder. "Hey kid, how are you holding up?"

Tim raised his head and looked at Mike. Those bright green eyes held such loss and devastation that Franks had to take a deep breath. "You knew?"

Mike grabbed the back of his neck. "Aw, hell. Not for sure kid, we ..."

"No. Miss Shannon, you knew?" Tim's eyes started watering.

"Tim ..." Mike was at a loss. He heard movement behind him, but couldn't break eye contact with Tim. He had a good idea who was behind him listening.

"It's my fault ... that's why you never told me."

Mike heard a gasp from behind him and closed his eyes briefly, glad that his body was blocking Tim's view of the doorway. "Kid ..."

"Maybe that's what Talbot saw in me. Every family Agent Mike ... my biological family, my adopted family, Gibbs' family ... all dead, because of me."

Mike squeezed Tim's shoulder hard. "That's not true."

Tim search Mike's eyes, shook head, and lowered it back down to his knees.

"Hey." He shook McGee. "Hey!" He knew that he wasn't going to get anymore of a response from Tim right now. He stood and turned to look at his audience.

Gibbs stood in the doorway, eyes and face full of anger.

Franks strode across the room in one step, grabbed Gibbs' elbow and forced him out of the room.

"What the hell, Mike!"

"Probie, maybe ..."

"NO!" Gibbs yanked his arm out of Franks grasp. "No more secrets. I want it all, NOW!"

'Jethro ..."

"Ducky, go take care of McGee." He leveled a dangerous look to the doctor, who just slowly nodded and left the room.

Gibbs turned his attention back to Mike, a thunderous expression on his face.

Mike sighed and wished he could have a cigarette. "Alright, alright. Office." He gestured towards the hallway. Gibbs stormed out.

Franks took a moment to look at Abby, who was chewing on her bottom lip. "Get back to work, darlin'. It'll all work out." _I hope._ He smiled .

She nodded, looked sadly towards the doorway Gibbs had stormed through, then turned her attention back to her 'babies'.


	16. Chapter 16

Since you guys liked the last chapter so much and have been such great reader & reviewers, I'm giving you the next chapter early. Enjoy!

Disclaimer: I own nada & making just as much!

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><p>Mike walked out of the lab ... and right into Gibbs. "Well, come on Probie." Franks gently pushed past Gibbs and headed straight to the elevator.<p>

Gibbs was right on his heels. The elevator barely engaged before Gibbs threw the emergency stop. "Out with it Franks."

Mike took a deep breath and let it out slowly. "After all the paperwork was set up the McGees decided it would be a good idea to make a fresh start. So Dan put in for a transfer to a base that was close to someone they knew and trusted with Tim."

"Alameda."

"Yup. Not that an eight hour drive is close, but Dan, Cindy and Shannon thought it would be best for Tim to be somewhere that he had a support system. Hated to see the kid go, but it was for the best." Mike paused in his rumination.

Gibbs stayed quiet and just kept staring at Mike.

A small soft smile reached Mike's face, surprising Gibbs. "A week later, Cindy had her baby, a beautiful girl, Sarah. Her and Dan knew that the baby would take up a lot of their time and didn't want Tim to feel pushed aside. So they decided to do something fun. Even invited me, JR, and Hal along." He huffed a laugh. "One big odd family."

"Shannon too?" Gibbs asked in a whispered tone.

"Yeah, her and her girl."

"Kelly? Tim met Kelly?"

"JR and Hal couldn't make it, but I made sure to be there. It was a meeting that I'd never forget. Tim was hiding behind Dan, peaking out from around his leg. Your little girl just march right up to him and stuck out her hand. 'Hi, I'm Kelly, nice to meet you.' Tim stared at her hand, to afraid to reach out. Kelly just smiled brighter at him. 'Don't worry, you won't hurt me. Mommy said so.' Yup, that's exactly what she said to him."

Gibbs slumped against the elevator wall, overwhelmed.

"Tim reached out a shaky hand and gave Kelly's a good shake, I don't think they let go of each other the rest of the day." Mike was glad Gibbs was staring at the floor, that way he wouldn't see that his own eyes were getting misty.

"I think Shannon was doing some matching making, even called her on it. She said whether they ended up husband and wife, like brother and sister, or best friends for life, they were good for each other. Anyway, about halfway through the day, us three adults started to finally relax and let the kids roam on their own. Until ..."

Gibbs looked up, terrified what he was going to hear. "Until what, Mike?"

"Well, let's just say your daughter had a set of lungs on her. Our legs couldn't carry us fast enough to find out was going on. When we reached them, Kelly was demanding an apology from some kid that had apparently run her over. Tim was in between them, trying to stare down this kid who was almost a foot taller than him. He kept a protective arm on Kelly the whole time."

"By the time we walked over, the kid's mother had come over too. Made her son apologize. Your daughter ..." Mike laughed. "... as soon as she got her apology, just said 'Okay, thanks.', and walked away. Tim dropped the scowl, held out his hand, and said thanks."

Mike shook his head. "The other kid was so confused, wasn't sure if he should take Tim's hand or not. Kid's mother grabbed her son by the collar threatening him with punishment when they got home. Tim spoke up, asking her not to. Said, 'It was just an accident. Kelly turned around too quick, and your son was walking too fast. Neither of them could stop from hitting into each other. Kelly said sorry and that's all she wanted back. No one should be punished for an accident.'"

Gibbs just stared at Mike in complete and utter shock.

"Yeah, that was the mother's reaction too." He laughed again. "Kelly called after Tim and he ran off to join her, leaving us all standing in shock." Mike shook his head again. "I kept tabs on Tim through the years, found out that kid, his name was Tyler, and his family was stationed at Alameda too. Ended up befriending Tim and watched out for him, until the family moved to a different base."

Gibbs closed his eyes and pictured the scene as if he was there himself. Seeing, in his mind's eye, Tim being so protective of Kelly, just like he had been of Sarah, both warmed his heart and made it ache at the same time. He had thought a lot of 'what ifs' before when he thought of Tim almost becoming his son, now it was double. Wondering what would have happened had his wife and daughter lived, it was overwhelming. _So many possibilities!_ Gibbs shook his head at all of his thoughts, opened his eyes and stared at Mike.

"Mike ... I ..." Gibbs had so many things he wanted to say all at once, but he forced himself to focus on what started this conversation. "None of that explains why Tim feels responsible for their deaths."

"Well ... you see ... aw hell! Since it was supposed to be a special day for Tim, we let him pick where he wanted to go."

"And ..."

"And he chose the Museum of Art ... in Oceanside."

The mention of that place slammed into Gibbs like a physical blow and he sucked in a breath. "That's where ..."

"Yeah, it happened after the day had ended and we all headed home. Shannon got a bit mixed up on her directions and ended up seeing something she shouldn't have."

Grief of losing his family washed over Gibbs. He closed his eyes and rubbed at the bridge of his nose. The conversation he and Mike had after Gibbs had watched that video now made total sense. "You never told Tim what happened to them, that's why you didn't want me telling him about that video."

"Of course. After Shannon made her statement and it was decided to put them in protective custody, she told Tim that they would be out of touch for a while, could be a long while, and that her and Kelly would get back in touch with him as soon as they could. Being the smart kid that he is, and his experience with Hal, he knew what being 'protected' meant. After it happened, I called Dan and Cindy. We decided it was best for Tim not to know. He was just putting his life back together. We knew he would blame himself."

Franks leveled a serious look to Gibbs. "The question now is, do you?"

"Do I what?"

"Blame the kid."

"What?" Gibbs finally straightened up. "How could you even ... No. Mike, I don't blame him. There is only one person I hold responsible for the death of my family ... and you know what happened to him."

Mike narrowed his eyes. "You sure? 'Cause, if your wife would have never met Tim, she wouldn't have been in Oceanside that day, never would have seen a Marine getting murdered."

"THAT'S NOT HIS FAULT!" Gibbs stepped into Mike's personal space, looking ready for a fight. "Do you think that?"

"Hell no! Just had to make sure. If you felt that way, even a little, I'd have him removed from you."

"Like hell you will."

The two men stood in silence staring at each other. Gibbs took a deep breath, trying to calm himself and digest just how much Timothy McGee had always been intertwined with him. "You should have told him Mike. Hell, you should have told me."

Franks shook his head. "I believe what we did was for the best, still do. What would knowing have done for either of ya? You both needed time."

Gibbs was angry again. "Well for one thing, it would have prevented us from being blind sided right now!"

Mike was angry too. "Yeah, Probie, that's why I told you not to open old wounds. So what did you do? Go after him telling all about that damn video!"

"No! I ..." The anger deflated out of Gibbs. "No Mike, Tim ... he was hurting so much, I did the only thing I could think of to comfort him. I held him and ... sang to him."

"Oh, jesus! You sang that same lullaby Shannon did."

"I'm the one who taught it to her."

"Son of a bitch!" Mike hissed as he ran his hands through his hair, grabbing the back of his neck.

Gibbs had more that he wanted to discuss with Mike, but he had an overwhelming need to get back to McGee. He turned and flipped the switch, moving the elevator again.

When the doors opened, Gibbs only took one step when Franks grabbed his arm again. "What are you going to say to him?"

"What he needs to hear."

"Probie, ..."

"Enough Mike." Gibbs turned to look his former boss square in the eyes. "I get that your trying to protect him, I do. But enough's enough."

"He can't ..."

"Yes he can. Stop thinking of him as a child. You may have know him all those years ago, but I've know him for the past six, five as part of my team. He has grown, a lot. As an agent and as a person. No more handling with kid gloves. I know how to talk to my people. Now, let me go."

"Jethro ..."

"Let. Me. Go."

Mike narrowed his eyes at Gibbs. "Don't you dare hurt him."

"Let go now, Franks."

Mike did, but now it was his turn to follow right on Gibbs heals.


	17. Chapter 17

Disclaimer - I own nothing nor am I making any money.

* * *

><p>Abby spun around as soon as she heard the door open. To her, it didn't look like anything got settled. Both men were still fuming. They walked right past her, going straight for McGee.<p>

However, Ducky cut them off by standing in the doorway with his hands raised. Both men paused and Abby came to stand right behind them, wanting to hear how Tim was doing.

"I am very worried about that young man. He didn't move or respond to me at all."

"I've got this Duck."

Ducky took a good look at the two men. They both had a fire in their eyes. _Two fathers battling it out to see who is right about raising one son._ Ducky wasn't sure that was the best place for them to be right now. "Jethro ..."

"Duck! I've. Got. This."

Gibbs didn't wait for any more protests and pushed his way into the room where Tim was, still in the same position as when he left. All the anger fell away. He knew what he needed to do to help his hurting ... son. _Damit! That's what he is, they're all family._

Gibbs walked calmly to Tim and sat down beside him. "Been a hell of a couple of days for us." He watched as Tim drew further into himself, as if afraid of Gibbs.

"Tim ..."

He shrunk back even further, which brought Gibbs' anger back in full. He leaned in close, getting his mouth right next to McGee's ear. "Now you listen to me. This is exactly what Talbot wants. You separate and alone. You're not, ever! Fight back from this. That's what Shannon saw in you, your ability to keep fighting. Hell, Tim, that's what I saw in you all those years ago in Norfolk. It might have been separated by years, but we both wanted you to be part of our family. Fight son, fight."

Gibbs knew he had been heard when he saw Tim's grip on his elbows loosen. He didn't move any more than that, but it was all Gibbs needed. He smiled and stood. He watched Tim as his body started to relax more. _He's thinking, good._

He walked back out to the main lab, still smirking. He looked at each of the three anxious faces. "Leave him be for now."

"Gibbs ..."

"He'll be fine Abs. Let him digest what I said."

The confidence now radiating off of Gibbs was all Abby needed to feel better. "You got it Bossman!" She spun around and went back to her searches.

Gibbs looked over to Ducky, who still looked doubtful. "Don't worry Ducky, he'll be fine." He then turned his attention to Mike. His smile fell and he narrowed his eyes. "Now, explain to me why you guys didn't even explore the possibility that he had a family."

Mike, once again, grabbed Gibbs arm and this time, pulled him away from the doorway. Ducky following closely behind. "We suspected, alright." Mike gruffed out. He stopped just before leaving the lab, so that Abby could hear too. "He was too just different from Talbot, but the kid never gave an indication of another family. All these years he has believed Talbot was his biological father."

"Did you even check?"

"And where do you think we should have started? Do you know how many families were torn apart by Talbot? Hell, I heard from Hal that just a year ago bodies were found that could possibly be linked to that monster." Franks turned to look at all of them. "He had made a connection with Dan and Cindy, they were good for him. They were what he needed, what he deserved. We had no way of knowing for sure if he was or wasn't Talbot's kid and we didn't want to rip him away from one family to hand him over to another, that may not have treated him as good as they should."

"You had no right, ..."

"Yes, we did!" Franks balled his hands into fists. "Look, none of you were there. The kid was hurting and all we wanted was to stop it. Dan and Cindy did that for him." He turned to look at Gibbs. "I'm sorry if there was a family out there looking for him, but I stand by our decision. The McGees are who he needed, period."

Gibbs and Franks stared down each other. "Did his adoptive family feel the same way?"

"I don't think they really thought about it, never said anything to any of us. They just knew they loved that little boy. End of story for them."

Gibbs wanted to be angry, but he couldn't. Franks was right, he wasn't there and, if he were to be honest with himself, he probably would have made the same decision. He sighed and let the anger drop. "Alright, I guess I can understand that. But this is it right? No more secrets."

Franks let his own anger fade and relaxed his hands. "Nope, Probie, nothing else."

Gibbs gave him a skeptical look. "Really ... cross my heart."

"Thought you didn't have one."

Franks snickered at that. "Good point."

Everyone relaxed at the banter. It was the first time, in a very long time, that things felt back to normal.

Gibbs turned to Abby. "Have you found anything yet?"

"No." She sighed in frustration. "I thought it would be easy, but this guy is good." She turned back to her computer and brought up a line chart. "It's not as simple as finding the prisoner the user name belongs to, HypnoWatch2B is on a public domain provider." She turned to Gibbs and saw the lost look he already had. She smiled, "Say you wanted to get a personal e-mail, one that you could use anywhere, one not related to work. You would go to a public domain, such as Yahoo, Google, G-mail so on, there's hundreds of them."

Gibbs nodded as he finally understood.

"HypnoWatch2B has been accessed through at least four different prisoners from three different prisons."

"How is that possible?"

"He must be one of those traveling reformers." Hal chimed in as he walked into the lab. Gibbs, Ducky, Franks and Abby all turned to him.

Hal sighed and rolled his eyes. "You know, the ... 'Prison is not just for punishment, its for reform'." He made quotation gestures with his fingers and shook his head. "I can some what agree, depending on the reason why they ended up in prison. I just don't think anyone in max security should be involved with that program, but hey, what do I know."

"So what's a traveling reformer?"

"Well, Gibbs, someone who has been on good behavior and has encouraged others to do the same are given the privilege to go around to other prisons to encourage their inmates."

"That can go wrong on so many levels." Gibbs rubbed the bridge of his nose.

"Usual does Jethro." Fornell strolled in, deciding to join the party.

"So why do they do it?"

"Why do any of us in law enforcement do what we do ... in the hopes of changing things for the better." Fornell leaned against the door.

"What do you know of these programs?"

Fornell shrugged. "The inmates chosen for these programs are put through evaluations and test and background checks and so on. Then they go around trying to show the other inmates the error of their ways. They work almost like counselors."

"Meaning?"

"Meaning they can get close to other inmates, either getting their personal info to use or have them do things."

Gibbs let out a breath. "So, whoever this guy is, he may not have even sent these e-mails himself."

"Yeah."

Gibbs turned back to Abby. "So we're not going to be able to find out who this guy is?"

"It definitely makes it harder Bossman."

"Wonderful." He took a deep breath and let it out very slowly. "Alright, Abs, keep trying."

"Probie, we could 'ask' the inmates she's already tracked down."

"Or, we can contact the wardens to see who was visiting." Fornell added.

"How about both?"

"I like the way you think Gibbs. Let me work on the wardens, I've got some connections." Hal winked as he turned and left the lab.

Gibbs gave a half side questioning look to Franks.

"Don't worry, he'll come through, always does."

"You better be right." Gibbs took a moment to gather his thoughts. "Alright, Franks, stay here and keep an eye on Tim, but .." he turned to look at his former partner right in his eyes. "... make sure you keep me in the loop."

"You got it, Probie."

"Abs, you keep at it, never know what you might find."

Abby saluted and nodded.

"Ducky, ..."

"I think I will stay here Jethro."

Gibbs nodded to the doctor. He turned to look at the room where Tim was still sitting. He wanted to go over and take care of his hurting agent, but knew Tim needed space right now. He squared his shoulders and strode out of the lab. _If I felt like he was my son before, he definitely is now. He protected Kelly twice, the first time before he ever met her. Shannon wanted him to be part of our lives ... I'm going to honor that ... hell, it won't be hard ... since … since, I feel the same way._

Gibbs leaned against the elevator walls. His team had always been like family to him, especially this team. Each one had needed a guiding father figure ... well, almost. Tim never needed a father figure, but someone who saw his potential. Gibbs never wanted to step on the relationship Tim had with his family, but it didn't mean he felt any less for him compared to the others.

Gibbs straighten and pulled himself together. If anything, this situation strengthened his feelings and put Tim firmly in the role of _**his**_ son. _Now, more than ever, Tim needs a family. He knew my girls and was already thought of as part of ours._

By the time the elevator doors opened to the squad room, Gibbs usual protectiveness of his team had gone into overdrive and he was barking orders to Tony and Ziva.

Seeing Gibbs fired-up but focused let them know Tim was okay. It was the stabilization they needed get their heads back in the game. With renewed vigor, the delved into their assigned tasks.


	18. Chapter 18

Disclaimer: I own nothing & not making any money.

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><p>The day was nearing its end, and everyone was frustrated. They seemed to be getting no where, fast. Each time the team thought they had something, it lead to a dead end. Strasser told Gibbs he would have the information from the wardens by tomorrow morning. That did not go over well.<p>

Strasser shrugged and said. "Red tape Gibbs, you know how it is, always CYOA."

That sent Gibbs storming out of the bullpen in search of coffee. When he came back, Gibbs decided it was time to call it a day. It wasn't their weekend to work, but everyone from the Director to the janitor knew they would all be back tomorrow. Team Gibbs never stopped in the middle of an investigation, especially when one of their own was being affected.

It was decided that Ziva would play host to Tony and Abby. She made sure to grab a new package of paperclips in full view of Tony.

"Is that really necessary? Wasn't I a perfect gentleman last night."

"And I wish to make sure you stay that way." Ziva remarked as she dropped the paperclips into her purse.

Tony sighed. "Fine. Alright, now all we need is Abby and we can head out."

"I'll go and send her up." Gibbs said as he stood. "Listen, I know it's Friday night, but ..."

"No worries, Boss. We're have no plans for bar hopping, not tonight. Not until we get Talbot taken care of."

Gibbs looked over his senior agent approvingly. He nodded and turned to leave.

"Boss?"

"Yeah, DiNozzo?"

"How is he?"

Gibbs sighed and turned back around. "Confused, scared, totally bowled over." He shook his head, then looked at Tony, then Ziva right in the eyes. "But don't worry, he's going to be coming back swinging."

"You sure? Maybe we should ..."

Gibbs held up his hands. "Give him some time. He's had a lot to deal with these past couple of days. It will take him time to come to grips with all of it. We have a long road ahead of us."

Tony let out a long breath and shoved his hands in his pockets. "I know Boss, its just ... I, we want to help."

Ziva nodded her agreement.

"I know you two. Look, I'm not trying to shut you out. Tim just needs his space, right now. Trust me, once Talbot is out of the picture, he is going to need all of us, okay."

"Yeah, okay Boss." He didn't sound totally convinced.

Gibbs wanted to say more, but he needed to wait until he could talk, really talk, to Tim about Shannon and Kelly before he let anyone else in on all of what was going on. He just turned and left the two partners staring at his back.

XXXX

Once back in the lab, Gibbs told Abby to join Tony and Ziva in the squad room. She kept trying to start a conversation with him while she shut down her computers. He grabbed her gently by the arms. "Abs, listen. We'll talk, but later. I need to focus on Tim right now. Can you let me do that?" He looked at her meaningfully.

"Of course! I ..."

He stopped her by placing a soft kiss on her forehead.

She smiled and then fell into a fierce hug with him. The soft words and kiss let her know that he didn't hate her for what she had done. Her eyes watered, but she didn't let herself cry. Abby gave a soft peck to Gibbs cheek and then left.

Ducky and Franks exchanged approving glances.

Gibbs made a show of looking around. "Where's Fornell?"

"He left hours ago Gibbs." Strasser answered. "He had things he wanted to follow up on. Said he be back in the morning."

Gibbs nodded and turned his attention to Dr. Mallard. "Jimmy still staying with you Duck?"

"Jethro, I really like to stay with Timothy tonight."

"Thanks, but not necessary. I know you still have your mother to look after."

Ducky sighed and looked incredibly old. "Yes, well ... I could see if her nurse wouldn't mind staying on later."

Gibbs smiled at his old friend, walked up and placed his hands on Ducky's shoulders. "I'll take care of him. I need you to take care of you ... and Palmer."

Ducky huffed a small laugh. "Very well, Jethro. Then I shall go and collect Mr. Palmer for the evening." He looked around to the other men in the lab. "See you in the morning." He got as far as the door, turned back to look at the room McGee was still sitting in, then to Gibbs. He saw the determination in Gibbs' eyes, but also the gentleness. He nodded one last time and then he too left for the day.

Gibbs walked into the room where Tim was, not having moved an inch. He sighed, leaned down, grabbed Tim by the arm, and pulled him up right. _This is getting to be a habit._ "Time to leave for the day. I'm hungry and I know you need to eat, so we are going to the dinner I mentioned before, okay."

"Yes Boss." It was barely whispered out, but at least it was a response. Gibbs nodded to himself and lead Tim out into the main lab. He had to stop when Tim planted himself and looked around.

"What ya doing, McGee?"

"Abby ... I need to apologize ... is she still here?" Tim was still talking quietly, but what he said brought a smile to Gibbs.

"Don't worry about that right now Tim. Besides, I know she isn't mad at you for anything you said in autopsy."

"I shouldn't have said it. I just ..."

Gibbs leaned in close. "She knows Tim, really. You trust me?"

Tim looked at him, eyes still lost, but not as unfocused. "I trust you."

Those three words held so much meaning that Gibbs reached up, grabbed Tim at the back of the neck, and brought their heads together. "I know you do son. Abby's fine, promise, but you can talk to her tomorrow, if it'll make you feel better."

Gibbs felt Tim relax in his grip. "It would ... thanks ... for everything ... I ..."

"You never have to thank me Tim ... but you're welcome." Gibbs released him, but stayed close. "You ready to get something to eat?"

Tim nodded, but kept his head lowered.

"Alright, then. Let's go." He turned to Hal and Mike. "You two ready?"

"I'm starving, Gibbs! Let's get out of here." Strasser said, throwing on his coat.

"Like you couldn't stand to loose a few pounds, Hal." Mike snarked back as he too, pulled on his coat.

The two men continued to bicker, Gibbs watching them. When he looked at Franks he caught a slight look of ... jealously. He couldn't be sure, it was there and gone so quickly. He shook his head, then lead the way out of the lab and the building. He noticed Tim stayed in close proximity, even reached out and grabbed onto Gibb's back coat hem once they got outside.

It flashed Gibbs back to a time when he and Shannon had taken Kelly to a parade. She was so excited, but scared of the big crowd at the same time. She grabbed onto her dad, just like Tim was doing now. It made Gibbs heart swell with pride and protectiveness. So many people over the years have wanted Tim to be part of their family, yet he chose the McGees ... and Gibbs. He smiled to himself, Franks be damned. Tim was his, just like he said when Tim officially joined the team.

The foursome walked the couple of blocks to the dinner. Gibbs ordered soup and orange juice for Tim. _He's probably going to be sick of soup, but its the least greasy thing on the menu._

The three older agents talked, and jabbed, and snarked, and teased throughout dinner. Tim kept his head down and ate his soup in silence.

When Meg, the young, pretty waitress, with auburn hair and golden hazel eyes, came to clear away the used dishes, she asked if Tim wanted a refill of his orange juice. He just shook his head. She reached over to grab the glass, but was stopped when Gibbs grabbed her wrist.

"Tim, she can't hear your head rattle."

"It's okay, sir." She could tell the young man was carrying the weight of the world on his shoulders at the moment. Meg had seen it many times. Being so close the military and federal agencies, she had seen the loss people carried. She figured he lost someone close and his ... Father(?) ... was trying to be there for him.

"No." Gibbs turned to Tim. "Do you want more to drink?"

Tim slowly lifted his gaze to meet the waitress' eyes. "No thank you."

His eyes were so broken and sad, that her own eyes started to well in response to the pain she was seeing. Meg looked anxiously to the man holding her wrist and saw that he was intently watching the young man. When Tim finally answered her, his voice was barely above a whisper, but the older gentleman gave a quirk of a smile then released his hold on her.

"We're ready for the bill miss."

Meg stayed frozen, just watching Tim, wanting nothing more than to make sure he was alright.

"Miss?"

"Oh, sorry ... um ... yeah. I'll ... I'll be right back with your check."

The Franks and Strasser were amused. "Looks like you've got an admirer, kid." Franks laughed out.

Tim just shrugged. Gibbs, however, was not pleased. His youngest, didn't need a pity or sympathy date. When she returned with the check, he gave her his worst death glare, but Meg never noticed, her focus completely on Tim.

_NCIS, huh? Well, I'm going to need to look him up. If nothing else, I could be a friend. Tim ..._ She smiled after the men, watching them walk back to the navy yard.

XXXX

Once back at Gibbs' home, Tim quickly showered and went to bed, thoroughly exhausted.

Gibbs broke out the bourbon that the three shared in silence. An hour later, Gibbs excused himself to his basement.

Hal looked at Mike. "Hey, there's no room for jealously right now."

Franks sighed. "I know, I know. It's just ..." He sighed and started looking for his cigarettes.

"Don't worry. You know that you'll always mean the world to the kid."

"Yeah, but ..."

"You wanted more. Didn't we all."

Franks looked down at his hands. "I didn't even know I had a son of my own until it was too late. Sure, I've got his wife and daughter with me, but ... but it would have been nice to have been a dad for once. The kid's the closest I've ever gotten."

Hal understood. "Yeah, but you get to be a grandpa. That's something Gibbs will never know."

Franks nodded slowly. He finished his drink and stood. "What one loses, someone else gains, I guess."

"Way of the world, old friend."

Mike sighed, found his cigarettes, and headed for the front door. He stopped when he grabbed the handle and spoke over his shoulder. "Well, it sucks." He hissed out, then went out side.

Hal slowly swished the bourbon around in his glass. "That it does." He swallowed the rest in one gulp. "That it does, indeed."


	19. Chapter 19

All I have to say is - remember - I'm an evil writer! LOL!

Disclaimer: the usual - don't own, no money - but one can always wish!

* * *

><p>The three older men were awoken with sounds of activity coming from the room Tim was staying.<p>

Strasser and Franks were on their feet instantly, drawing their weapons. Gibbs came up from the basement, meeting the other two at the foot of the stairs. He took lead, the others following closely behind. When they reached the door, Gibbs knocked firmly. "Tim! Everything alright?"

The door flew open. Tim stood in the door way, completely dress and with a light in his eyes that had been missing since he found out about his family. "I think I know who it is. I need to get back to headquarters." He strode out of the room, heading to the kitchen.

The three men looked at each other, confused. They put their weapons away and followed the younger man.

"Tim! What are you talking about?"

McGee was in the middle of downing a glass of milk, when he was done, he grabbed an apple from the counter and headed towards the living room to grab his shoes. "The video. I think I know who the face is, I just need to apply the facial reconstruction to the person I suspect and see if it matches. Although, he should still be in prison. Maybe he escaped, or is out on parole, or got his conviction overturned, or ..."

"TIM!" Gibbs couldn't hide the smile in his voice or on his face. "Slow down and tell me what your thinking."

Tim sat down on the couch to put his shoes on. "I don't want to say, until I've had a chance to run a comparison. I don't want to send the case in the wrong direction." He hadn't looked up at any of them, but this was different than before. He was focused, the reason he wasn't looking up was because he was still going through possibilities in his head.

Once his shoes were on, he practically bounced off the couch, grabbed his coat and backpack, then turned to the others. "You guys coming?"

"Kid, it's four in the morning!" Franks grumbled as he tried to shake the sleepiness from his head.

"We'd be getting up anyway."

"In two more hours!" He turned to Gibbs. "This is your fault! Training your agents like Marines."

Gibbs smirked then turned to Tim. "Give us five minutes to get ready."

Strasser shook his head. "Five! I'm still waking up! No way, give me ten at least!" He looked pleadingly at Tim.

"But .." McGee looked at all three, only Gibbs seemed ready to walk out the door. "Alright, ten." He sat back down on the couch, pulled out a tablet and starting writing some ideas and theories.

Gibbs actually chuckled. He turned to the other two. "Alright you old timers, better get moving."

Franks and Strasser looked like they wanted to give a retort, so Gibbs put an end to that. "Time's a wasting."

They grumbled but went about getting ready as quickly as they could.

Gibbs looked back over to Tim. He was so proud that he reached over and ruffled Tim's hair.

McGee looked up at him. The hurt was still there, but the determination was finally back.

"I'm fighting, Boss."

"Good." He turned to finish getting fully ready himself.

"Boss?"

He turned back around. "Yeah, Tim?"

"I ... we should talk."

"Later."

"Boss?"

Gibbs walked back over, squatted down and placed his arms across McGee's legs. Tim followed his every movement with is eyes.

"There's a lot I already know."

Tim's eyes grew large. "You ..."

"Found out recently ... just like you." He didn't want Tim to think he had been carrying around a secret like that for years. "And, you're right. We do need to talk, but not now. Too much other stuff going on. When we put these two cases to bed, then we'll talk, alright."

McGee's eyes softened and he gave a very small smile. "Yes, Boss."

Gibbs stood and ruffled Tim's hair again. "Glad to have you back." He walked away to get changed.

McGee watched after him. It made his heart hurt a little less having everyone around him. He knew they would all help him, but he never realized how much he actually needed them. He wasn't sure if that was a good thing or a bad thing. Right now, he didn't care, he was just glad he had them.

XXXX

Once back at NCIS, the men went straight to Abby's lab. Tim bypassed the main lab and went back to the computer he had been working on before getting hit with Abby's bombshell. He wouldn't let himself think about any of that, not now. _There is too much going on right now, Gibbs is right, isn't he always. I will deal with that stuff later._ Tim smiled at his own thoughts. He sat down and got started.

Gibbs, in his usual fashion, placed a hand on the back of McGee's chair and on the table and leaned in. "You think you recognized something, from that?" After all of the adjusting Tim had done with it trying to fix the pixels, it now looked more like an inkblot test than a face.

McGee shrugged. "It's just a hunch." He focused back to the computer.

"Coffee?"

"Sure Boss."

"What you want?"

"I'll just take what ever you're having." Tim never changed his focus from the computer.

Gibbs smiled and shook his head. He knew that Tim drank the fancy coffees - half cream, with hint of blah blah blah. With him saying he'd take whatever Gibbs was having, he knew Tim was trying not to be any trouble. He decided to surprise Tim by getting the exact coffee he liked.

Gibbs thought for a moment about not taking protection with him, but what kind of example would that set. Plus, if Tim found out, he would be worried and upset.

"Franks, you and Strasser stay here." He looked over to the two agents who had accompanied them in to the building. "Burton, you're with me."

Burton looked surprised, but just nodded his agreement. The two men left quietly.

Mike looked at Hal and shook his head. "Never thought I'd see the day Gibbs willing took a bodyguard with him."

Hal grinned. "Guess the kid mellowed him out. He wouldn't be the first one, either."

Franks just glared back while Strasser chuckled.

XXXX

The coffee shop was only a five minute walk and open 24/7, New York wasn't the only city that never slept. Gibbs walked quickly, leaving Burton two steps behind.

Gibbs couldn't keep the smile from his face, pleased by the change in Tim's demeanor.

"Agent Gibbs, please, slow down ..."

Gibbs shook his head, but didn't slow; causing Burton to quicken his stride.

They were only a street corner away when Burton called out to Gibbs again. "A-agent ... Gibbs ..."

Now, Gibbs was getting frustrated. _Why aren't agents in shape any more?_ He stopped and turned on his heels to face Burton and was surprised with what he saw.

Burton's eyes were wide, pain etched on his face. "... Run ..." As he spoke, blood trailed out of his mouth.

It was so unexpected, that Gibbs stood still in shock for a moment. Then his training took over, he grabbed for his gun and took a step forward at the same time. However, a shooting pain spread out from the base of his skull and radiated out to his whole head. He was completely knocked out before he hit the ground.


	20. Chapter 20

I'm an evil writer ... but a push over. So many of you asked, how could I refuse. Here is the next chapter a little early. Enjoy!

Disclaimer: I own no part of NCIS (except the season of DVD - lol) & not make any money (in fact, I'm spending on more seasons! LOL)

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><p>Franks greeted Abby as she entered her lab, thirty minutes later. "Doesn't anyone one on Gibbs' team sleep?"<p>

"Well, good morning to you to." Abby quipped as she kissed him on his cheek.

Franks huffed. "This isn't morning! Even the sun is still asleep!"

"I just wanted to get back to searching for ..."

Mike reached out and grabbed her upper arm, stopping her explanation. He nudged his head towards the inner lab. She turned her head to see McGee industriously working. He looked so much back to himself that she couldn't help but smile.

"Is he doing okay?"

"So far."

Abby looked back at Mike and understood what he wasn't saying. Who knew what surprises today would bring and how they would affect Tim. She went to ask a question when Franks' phone rang.

He gave her a disparaging look, but answered. "Franks." He scowled, looked over to Tim, then quickly and quietly left the lab.

Abby had a very bad feeling and turned to look at the other person in the lab, Hal Strasser. He was watching where Franks had left.

Mike popped his head in and crooked his finger to have Hal join him.

Strasser and Abby exchanged worried looks as he walked out.

Abby wrung her hands, deciding it was best to just get back to work. She had just finished turning all of her machines on, when the two men came back into the room. They looked stressed and worried. She was going to ask what was going on, but a look from Franks stopped her.

She turned back to her computers, eyes welling with tears. _Now what! What more does Timmy have to go through? It's not fair! None of it!_

She wiped at her eyes as get got herself focused on the task at hand.

XXXX

_Yes!_ Tim exclaimed to himself as he jumped up from his chair. He looked around for Gibbs. He realized that everyone was standing in the main lab. _That makes sense_, he nodded to himself.

Then he noticed that there was not a cup of coffee on the desk as he sat back down. _I could have sworn Gibbs said he was going to get one for me. Maybe I misunderstood._ He started to stand again when he saw Franks take a call, then leave the room.

He may not be as experienced as Gibbs, but his gut started churning. Tim turned back to the computer, however, he kept his focus towards the main lab.

He watched as Franks summoned Strasser and then the looks on their faces when they came back. He also saw Abby wipe at her eyes.

Tim gripped the side of the computer desk. _Something's going on._ He knew they wouldn't come right out and tell him. He understood everyone was trying to be protective of him, and to be honest, he hadn't been acting very capable lately, but no more. Gibbs had wanted him to fight back, and that was exactly what he was going to do. _So, how do I find out what's going on?_

He took a calming breath. He needed to tell Agent Brooks what he found, so he had to get to the squad room. If he was lucky, he could overhear the newest crisis.

He relaxed his grip and took another breath. Then he stood and in DiNozzo fashion, straighten his jacket. He closed his eyes for a moment to prepare himself. When he reopened his eyes, he plastered a smile on his face and rushed out of the room. "Hey! I figured it out! I ... What's wrong?"

All three jumped when Tim came out of the inner lab. Franks took charge. "I'd rather be sleeping and you come out here trying to give us a heart attack! What do you think, kid! Jeez!" He ran his hand through his hair, hoping Tim would buy his lie.

"Oh, sorry." Tim looked down, trying to look embarrassed.

Franks let out a low breath. "It's okay, kid. Just tell us what you found."

Tim looked up and smiled. "I know who the face on the video is." He started walking towards the door. "Come on, I need to tell Agent Brooks."

Mike grabbed his arm as he walked past. "Kid, I don't think he's in yet."

Tim looked at his watch. "Should be. Come on Franks, if nothing else, I can have it ready to present to him."

Mike studied Tim's face. He could always tell when the kid was up to something, and this time was no different. _Could he have found out about the call I received?_

However, McGee had learned well from Gibbs. He might not be _**as**_ good at hiding his emotions as the others on his team, but after all these years, he wasn't as obvious as he used to be. He stared back. "Is there something wrong with me going to the squad room?"

Franks knew he couldn't come up with a good reason to keep Tim out of the bullpen. "No. 'Course not." He let go of McGee's arm. "I just can't believe how early everyone starts their day around here." He shook his head. "Glad I left when I did. Never be able to keep the hours now."

Tim shook his head. "Come on Agent Mike." He smiled and left the lab.

Franks looked back to Hal, giving him a silent message.

He nodded his understanding and pulled out his phone as soon as the door closed behind the two.

XXXX

McGee opted for the stairs. He told Franks it was for the exercise, but it was for the stealth. He hoped that if no one knew he was there, he might overhear what was going on. He knew Strasser would call ahead of them, but he wouldn't know how Tim choose to get to the squad room.

He needn't have worried. As soon as he stepped out of the stairwell, he could hear Tony yelling.

"What do you mean you have nothing! How is that even possible! I have an agent down and my boss is missing! You find me something, NOW!" DiNozzo threw the phone back onto its cradle.

Tim froze as Franks place a hand on his face and shook his head. _So much for keeping the kid in the dark._

"Tony! Lower your voice! McGee is on his way up here, he might ..."

"No might about it."

Tony and Ziva turned to the sound of Mike's voice. They saw Tim standing there with a terrified face.

DiNozzo closed his eyes and took a moment to compose himself. When ready, he opened his eyes and put on his best calm and in charge face. "Hey, Probie! What are you ..."

"Gibbs is missing?" McGee asked in a small and terrified voice.

"Tim ..."

"It's Talbot, isn't. I got him killed. I got Gibbs killed." He started to shake.

Mike put a hand on Tim's shoulder. "We don't know that."

McGee looked at him with pleading but incredulous eyes. "How can you even say that?"

Franks looked over to DiNozzo and nodded. "Go on, tell him."

Tony sighed. "Agent Burton was found a street away from Gibbs' favorite coffee shop. A knife stuck in his back."

"Is he ..."

Ziva rushed to reassure her friend. "No McGee, he is alive. He lost a lot of blood, but he is now recovering at Bethesda."

Mike squeezed Tim's shoulder. "See, when has Talbot ever left someone alive."

"Me."

"AND ..." He hurried to talk over McGee before he could get any thoughts on that subject going. "... there is no mark on Burton's hand."

"I don't have one."

"Kid ..."

"Mike, please. I'm not a kid any more. This is Talbot, we all know it. Please don't waste any time looking for any other reason."

Franks wanted to protest, but he couldn't. He had a very bad feeling that Tim was right.

His friend looked like he was going to pass-out, so Tony walked over and grabbed Tim by the arm, pulled him to his desk and made him sit down. "Listen, we're not ruling it out. In fact, that's our number one theory ... but, it's not our only one. You think Gibbs hasn't earned his share of enemies over the years?"

"Tony ..."

DiNozzo leaned in close. "Tim, listen, we'll find him. I swear."

Tim searched Tony's eyes and face. He wanted to believe him, really he did, but he knew Talbot too well.

Tony could see the doubt in Tim's eyes and tried his best not to take it personal. He needed a redirect. "You have something for Brooks?"

"I ... Tony, I can't ..."

Tony gripped McGee's shoulder, "Hey! Gibbs would want you to keep working on your case."

That was one thing Tim couldn't argue. He took a shaky breath to calm himself. "Okay, you're right." He nodded, stood, and walked over to Brooks' team. He gave one last look to Tony, and then immersed himself in his case.

Ziva watched Tony swallow his pride and do what was best for McGee. She came behind him and placed a soft hand on his upper arm.

Tony looked over his shoulder at her. "Come on, McGee isn't the only one that has work to do."

XXXX

A couple of hours later, Brooks' team had a warrant for their suspect, thanks to what Tim had found. He stayed behind gathering as much information as he could while the team went out to bring in their man.

However, Tony and Ziva had hit a brick wall. They had absolutely nothing. Tony was on the phone with some of his Metro buddies trying to get even more videos from the area where Burton and Gibbs were attacked.

Ziva was going through witness statements again, which weren't many and mainly were about finding Burton.

When his phone rang, Tony practically pounced on it and Ziva sprang from her seat.

"Yeah, Abby ... Sure, we'll be right down." He looked over to Ziva. "She has something, come on."

As they walked into the back elevator, the front elevator opened with Brooks leading their suspect out in handcuffs and having one of his team escorting him the rest of the way to interrogation.

Brooks walked over to McGee. "You ready for this Agent McGee?"

Tim looked up. He had been focusing solely on the case at hand, not letting thoughts of what could be happening to Gibbs distract him. "Yes. Let's get this done."

XXXX

"Give it to us Abby!" Tony said as he and Ziva walked into her lab.

She spun around, mascara streaking down her face. She flung herself into Tony's arms and let a new round of tears fall.

Tony rubbed her back soothingly. "Hey, it's okay. We'll find him."

Abby sniffled and pulled back. "I know you will. I'm just so worried about Gibbs ... and Tim."

Tony just nodded, he knew, they all knew, if anything happened to Gibbs, McGee would never forgive himself and they would lose them both.

Ziva came over and joined in the group hug until someone cleared their throat behind them. They all turned as one to face Agent Calvin Steiner, Brooks' second in command.

"Ummm, we have a knife ... think it might be the weapon used on Gunny Lonsert."

Abby released Tony, walked over to Steiner and signed for the weapon. He gave them all an odd look and left for interrogation.

Abby stared at the knife for a moment then nodded. She turned to start processing it.

"Is that from McGee's case?" Ziva questioned.

"Yeah. Kinda of a weird connection to Timmy."

"What do you mean?"

Abby turned to Ziva. "It seems the killer is Jeremy Pryor."

Tony furrowed his eyebrows in thought. "Why do I know that name?"

"Come on, Tony." Abby looked at him expectantly.

He just shook his head.

"It was McGee's first case as lead."

Tony thought harder and the memory finally clicked. "Oh! I remember now. It was with Erin Kendall."

"Who?"

"Before your time Ziva." He turned to her. "Tim was the only one who believed an eye witness, one Miss Erin Kendall, about the murder of a sailor. At first, we all thought he only believe her because she was cute."

Abby scoffed.

Tony smiled. "Don't be jealous."

"Jealous?"

"Seems Tim developed a crush on Erin, which she returned."

Ziva gave a small smile. "What happened?"

The smile fell away from Tony. "Seems she was right. We set-up a sting to catch the guy, but he went after Erin instead. Died pretty much right in front of Tim."

The smile also left Ziva's face. She remembered a case when she fell for Roy, who later died from the poison his co-worker was slipping in his cigars. At the time, Tim offered her comfort and support, she thought he was just trying to placate her. _I should have know better, McGee is the most sincere person I know._

"He took it hard, especially when he couldn't remember the details. We actually ... had ... to ... Shit! Oh, shit!"

Tony turned and ran out of the lab. Ziva and Abby gave each other confused looks, then Ziva took off after him.

Abby shook her head and turned back to the knife. She took several swabs of the blood left on the blade. As she was loading the samples into her Mass Spec, in her head, she completed Tony's train of thought ... and that's when it hit her too.

"No way." She turned from her machine. "There's no way." She hopped onto her computer to see if she was right, hoping the whole time she was wrong.


	21. Chapter 21

Oh, did I give you two chapters with cliffhangers? Sorry ... no I'm not! LOL! Remember, evil writer.  
>But seriously, thank you guys very much, I am so honored by your responses.<p>

Anyway - on with the story. Disclaimer: I do not own, nor am I making any money.

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><p>Ziva caught up enough to be only a step behind DiNozzo. "Tony, what is it? What did you figure out?"<p>

Tony didn't say anything, he just pushed himself harder to get to interrogation. He burst through the stairwell door, ran to the room, threw open the door, and stopped cold at the scene in front of him.

McGee had Jeremy by the collar and shoved up against the wall, while Brooks and his team tried to pry him off.

Tony watched as Jeremy whispered something in Tim's ear, causing him to throw his arm back to take a swing.

In one stride, Tony was right behind Tim and put his own arm in the way. He gave a tug, spinning Tim around to face him.

"Tony! He ... he knows! He ..."

Tony placed both hands on each side of Tim's face and gave him a shake. "Tim! I know! You need to calm down."

"But he ... Gibbs ..."

"Tim, I got this. You believe me, right?"

"I ...You don't know Talbot ... Tony ..."

DiNozzo had never seen or heard Tim so desolate and lost. "TIM! I'VE. GOT. THIS." He gave him another shake. "Okay?"

Tim closed his eyes and tried to calm himself, his mind racing through all of his options. When he decided on the course he wanted to take, he nodded his head. "Yeah, okay Tony."

Tony felt encouraged by what he thought was a show of trust. "Good. Now, go get yourself cleaned up."

Tim nodded mutely and then left the interrogation room.

Everyone stood in silence for a minute.

Brooks was the first to speak. "Thanks for your help Agent DiNozzo, I'll ..."

"Take it from here. This is my interrogation now Brooks."

Brooks narrowed his eyes. "Why?"

"Because my missing boss trumps your dead gunny."

"What?"

Tony jerked his head towards the door. Brooks didn't look happy, but gestured to his team and they left.

DiNozzo calmly walked to the table and took a seat.

"Yes, Agent DiNozzo, thanks for your help."

Tony looked at Jeremy. "I wasn't helping you. Have a seat."

Jeremy had a smug look on his face as he crossed his arms and leaned against the wall.

"Have a seat, or I'll have her ..." he nudged his head towards Ziva, "... pick up where Agent McGee left off."

Jeremy looked Ziva up and down. "Is she new? Prettier than the last one." He ran his tongue along his lips.

DiNozzo could tell the difference in the man before him. He was definitely harder than when they had arrested him all those years ago.

"And deadlier. Trust me, you don't want to test her."

"Oh, now I'm really interested."

Danger flashed through Ziva's eyes and she took a step forward.

Jeremy's eyes actually flickered with fear, then he sat down.

"Good choice." Tony eyed him up. "HypnoWatch2B, huh, clever."

Jeremy smiled. "Seems like _**you **_just figured it out, so yeah, I'd say it was pretty clever."

Tony didn't fall for his baiting. "So how did you meet Talbot?"

"Who?"

Tony, the most serious he's ever been, leaned forward on the table. "Now is not the time to play games with me. I'll only ask one more time, how did you meet Talbot?"

Jeremy smiled even wider. "You know, people really want to believe that prisoners can be reformed. That we will 'See the error of our ways' and change. What a joke. But it's a great way to get out of that hell hole for a while. So I did all the right things, said what they wanted to hear, even helped my fellow inmates. What suckers."

Tony wanted to reach over the table and rip Jeremy's head off, but knew that wouldn't help Tim, or Gibbs. Instead he stayed quiet and let Jeremy talk.

"So there I am, _**advising**_ inmates when the warden asks me if I would talk to the lifers. Can you believe it! The warden himself! I tell him sure, figure the more trust I get, the more privileges and time out I'll get too."

"That's where you met Talbot."

"Very good DiNozzo. He told me the only way he'd listen to anything I had to say was if I found his son for him." Jeremy huffed. "Practically put me through the wall when I told him he didn't have a son."

"You realize any child would have been placed in the Witness Protection Program?" Ziva asked.

Jeremy shifted his eyes to her for a moment, then focused back on DiNozzo. "Of course, even explained that to Talbot. He told me to check it out and get in contact with him through one of his cronies. I figured he was just a nut job, but something about him had me agreeing to look." He leered at the two agents. "Want to know what I found out?"

Neither Tony or Ziva said anything.

"There was no record of any child to Talbot, not even in 'The Program'. It was like the kid never existed."

"How would you know who is listed in the Witness Protection Program? Surely ..."

"They wouldn't let a killer have access?" Jeremy laughed at Ziva and shook his head. "Not directly, but _**Agent McGee**_ isn't the only one who's good at hacking."

"So, if you didn't find anything there, what made you keep looking?"

"I don't know. It was a mystery to work on. Something other to think about than all that 'change your ways' crap." Jeremy shrugged. Then he smiled again. "Then, I found something. See, Talbot had all the specifics of the last place he was with his son. Date, time, location, even the description of the people who took him. So I got myself into the Pax River database. Very interesting stuff there. Do you know how many service people transferred around the time Talbot gave me? Ten, that's it. Easy to track down."

"How did you have all the time to find them all."

Jeremy gave a horrible laugh. "I didn't do it all at once. Didn't want to abuse my privileges." He stopped talking.

Before Tony could get him started again, his phone rang. He scowled at it and looked at the caller id. "DiNozzo. - - Yeah, Abs, I know." He closed the phone before she could get started on a tangent. "So, go on."

"Do you like my story _**Agent DiNozzo?**_ Or maybe it's my voice? I've been told I've got a great voice."

Tony just glared at him and he laughed again. "You know, the FBI thinks they're so smart. Well, they're not! When you alter records, you have to alter them all. Including the ones that show a one Daniel McGee transferring into Pax River with just his wife in tow, but out to Alameda with a wife and _**two**_ kids."

"His wife was pregnant. They could have had more than one child." Ziva interjected.

"Oh? Since when is someone born at age ten?"

The two agents didn't drop their game face, but it really bothered them that an inmate was able to find out so much personal information about their friend.

Jeremy smiled wide. "The military keeps such good records regarding its personnel. When the McGees got to Alameda, they signed up for base day-care ... and enrollment into elementary school for a ten year old child." The smile dropped. "Do you know how I felt when I realized just who this kid was?"

Jeremy balled his hands into a fist, relaxed it, balled it again. He looked DiNozzo right in the eyes. "Do you know what it's like to be staring down the barrel of a gun ... knowing the guy is just itching to pull the trigger ... and then his boss, _**your boss**_, tells him if he wanted to shoot me, he should have done it while I was running."

Jeremy copied Tony's early gesture and leaned onto the table. "That's when I knew I would do anything to help Talbot get to him."

Tony could see Jeremy was just bursting to talk about it, so he stayed quiet, he didn't have to wait long. "Once I figured it out, Talbot and I started planning on how to break him out. He wasn't in a hurry so we waited until just the right time. See he wanted to teach the McGees a little lesson. When the 'family weekend' came up, we knew it was time."

"How did you know about McGee's weekend plans?"

Jeremy gave a slimy smile to Ziva. "The internet is such a world of information. Especially all those social networking sites."

"McGee would never ..."

"No, but his sister did." Jeremy laughed and started quoting Sarah's posts. "I'm so happy. I have so many special things to tell my family! I haven't seen Tim in ages! I hope that he's going to be happy for me. Blah, blah, blah." He laughed again. "Thanks to lil' sis, we knew their entire plan and time line." He drew back and looked thoughtful. "I wonder if she enjoyed her lesson."

Ziva was so angry, she started walking forward and only stopped because Tony held out his arm.

Once Ziva was stopped, Tony focused back on Jeremy. "And Lonsert?"

"Oh, he was just ... what's the term?" He snapped his fingers. "Collateral damage, that's it. He was just collateral damage. See Talbot wanted alone time with the family. Couldn't have Timmy there ... getting in the way."

Tony had so many things he wanted to say, but he had to stay focused. "Where is Gibbs?"

Jeremy sat back in his chair and smiled wickedly. "Oh, I'm sorry Agent DiNozzo, I'm not saying any more without legal council."

"You've just confessed to everything but the kitchen sink. Why not actually help yourself a little?"

"Help myself." Jeremy scooted closer the table again. "I've got exactly what I wanted. I've destroyed Timothy McGee." He looked at Ziva. "I have nothing more to say." He sat back wearing a shit-eating-grin.

Tony debated for a moment, then slowly stood. He jerked his head and Ziva followed behind him. When he reached the door, he turned back to Jeremy. "You know, your wrong."

"Oh, about what Agent DiNozzo?"

"Tim's not destroyed." He turned fully around to face Jeremy again. "He maybe knocked down, but he's not destroyed."

Jeremy laughed. "We'll see DiNozzo, we'll see."

Tony let the door close behind him. He walked into the hall and punched the wall ... twice.

"That wall never did anything to you DiNozzo."

Tony and Ziva turned to see Mike, Hal and Abby coming towards them.

"Not in the mood Franks." He ran his hands through his hair again. "Damn it!"

"I am still lost." Ziva looked around to everyone. "Will someone please fill me up."

Tony barked out a laugh. "I'm not even going to touch that one." He took a deep breath. "Okay, with Erin Kendall's case, remember I said he was too worked up to remember everything he saw the night she was killed."

Ziva nodded mutely.

"Well, to help Tim remember the details, we used hypnosis. What he remembered was the watch Jeremy was wearing. Little creep ran and Probie gave chase. Got him down. Stood over him trying to decided if he should shoot or not."

Ziva was shocked. She never thought that Tim would _**ever**_ be someone to stray close to stepping over that line. "So Gibbs stopped him."

Tony nodded. "Yeah."

The light bulb came for Ziva too. "I understand. Hypno ... Watch. But where does the 2B come from?"

Tony sighed. "That was Erin's apartment number."

Ziva closed her eyes, giving a silent pray for her friend. The rest stood silent.

"Where's the kid?"

"I sent him to get himself cleaned up."

"Alone?"

Tony's head shot up and he met Mike's eyes.

"Aw, damn it to hell, DiNozzo."

They all stormed the bathroom finding it completely empty.

"Damn it, Tim!" Tony started pacing. "That slime ball must have told him where Gibbs is. Sent him right into a trap!"

"Let me back in the room with Jeremy. I will make him tell us."

"He won't talk Ziva." Tony hissed as he paced.

"What are we going to do!" Abby wailed as she wrung her hands.

Tony went to give a snarky remark, but then froze. "You're going to tell us."

"What? Me? I wasn't even there."

"No, but you're going to read his lips." He grabbed her arm as he walked past. "Come on."


	22. Chapter 22

I am sooooo sorry that I am so late in posting. I ususally work from home, but got called into the office because of techincal issues. I've just gotten home, so this is the first thing I did. I haven't even changed out of my work clothes yet!

I hope it was worth the wait.

Disclaimer: I own nothing or not making any money.

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><p>Consciousness came slowly back to Gibbs. The first thing he realized was that his head was killing him. The second thing was that he was tied to a wooden chair. The chair back came up to his neck, it had arms that each one of his arms was tied to, he was also tied around the waist and each of his legs was tied to a corresponding chair leg.<p>

"So the great Jethro Gibbs finally wakes up."

Gibbs slowly raised his head and glared at Vincent Kevin Talbot.

Talbot was six foot tall of lean strong muscle, brown hair and eyes which were full of malice. He squatted down to be eye level with Gibbs, grinning.

Gibbs refused to be intimated, so he stared right back.

Talbot laughed. "I see why my boy likes you."

"He's not your boy."

Talbot struck out so quick that Gibbs didn't have time to register the movement. He felt the hit and it snapped his head to the side. He slowly turned his head back to Talbot, licking at his split lip.

"Don't you say that again." Talbot stood up. "Now, behave yourself."

"Why should I?"

"Because I need you to still be alive when my son gets here." Talbot turned and walked towards a table standing off to the side.

Gibbs looked around trying to figure out where he was. However, he couldn't see past the circle of light being cast by the lamp behind him. "He's not your son. We found his out who his real parents were. The Herrings, nice family. So why did you let Tim live? You've killed children before."

Talbot gripped a knife tightly by its hilt. He looked at Gibbs, smiled then relaxed his grip slightly. "Kids are a pain in the ass. They scream or cry or both." He walked back over in front of Gibbs and lowered himself down again. "So there I was in this pretty little garden. I had already offed the husband. Usually do, they can be trouble if not taken care of right away. I'm leaning over this pretty little girly, ready to finish her, when the back door opens. This green eyed kid just stares at us, then runs back into the house."

Talbot shook his head. "I'm thinking great, I've got a hider. Figure I better finish the girl and then go hunting, but before I could, the kid comes back out carrying towels and rushes right over to us. He pressed them to her wound, then grabbed my hand and tells me to push. I couldn't believe it. Kid couldn't have been any more than five, but there he was trying to give first-aid. Trying so hard not to be scared."

Talbot gave a terrible smile. "He was telling his mommy that it was going to be okay and that he was going to be right back with help. He looks up at me and asks me to stay with her and keep her safe until he gets back. Those green eyes were just so ... intense, for a five year old. That's when I knew."

"Knew what?" Gibbs was sick to his stomach hearing about what Tim had gone through.

"That he was meant to be with me. He was meant to be my son. That I could teach him so much." Talbot stood. "As he walked away, I leaned down to his mommy and whispered to her that I was going to take real good care of her boy." He laughed. "You should have seen her face! She was ready to die, thinking her child would be safe. Then I took that all away. I stood and called out to the child, told him his mom was worried about him going off on his own, that she wanted me to go with him."

Gibbs' head was buzzing, not only from the blows but also from the anger building in him.

"The boy stopped and I could tell his was thinking it over. Then he nodded and came back over. Took my hand off and put her hands on the wound instead. Told her to push hard and 'we' would be back soon. Grabbed my hand." Talbot stopped and looked down at his hand. He curled and uncurled his fingers, turned his hand over and over, smiling at his reminiscing. "I've never held anyone's hand like that before, especially not a kid's. I ..." Talbot shook his head. "Anyway, I picked the kid up, placed him in my car and took off. He didn't realize what was happening until we past the road to the hospital. Even then, he didn't cry or scream. He just asked if I was the one who hurt is mom and where was his dad."

Talbot's eyes darken but his smile increase. "Told him he was my son and that he was were he belonged." His hand once again tightened around the knife hilt. "I taught him everything I knew and yet ..." He raised himself to his full height. "And yet, he still found a way to leave me."

The terrible smile fell from Talbot and he grabbed Gibbs' left wrist. "Do you know what you do to a child who won't listen to you?"

Gibbs tried to pull free of Talbot, but he was held firmly in place by Talbot's grip and the ropes.

"You teach them a lesson." Talbot brought the knife blade tip to the top of Gibbs' hand. "Usually I'd wait until your just a body, but ..." he applied pressure and the tip drew blood as it sunk further into Gibbs "... your special. Oh, try not to move too much."

Gibbs bit his lip and use all of his Marine training to remain still, however, he couldn't hold in the sound. He cried out as Talbot carved his mark.

XXXX

Everyone gathered in Abby's lab. Tony paced as she watched the interrogation tape again and again. "You haven't gotten it yet?"

Abby spun around. "Stop hovering! I'm trying my hardest! It's not like he was looking right at the camera!"

Tony took a step towards her, but Ziva stood in front of him. She spoke softly, "Tony, let her concentrate."

"Ziva ..."

"Come. Let us get her more Caf-Pow." She turned Tony around and pushed him out the door, looking over her shoulder to give Abby a supportive smile.

Abby turned back to the screen. "I've never seen him like this before. He's usually just as cool as Gibbs."

Mike came over and placed a hand on her shoulder. "I know. Let Ziva take care of him, you worry about what's being said on that tape."

Abby nodded and re-focused on the tape.

XXXX

Once in the hall, Tony shook off Ziva's hold on him. He strode towards the elevators, keeping his back to her. They stood in silence until the doors opened. He then turned, ready to lay into her, but deflated instead. He slumped against the wall in between the two elevators. "Why couldn't he trust me Ziva?"

She sighed and walked over to Tony. "I do not think it was about that."

"Then what was it about?"

"Protecting us." Tony and Ziva turned to the sound of Abby's voice. "I figured it out, come on."

They all went back in and Abby cued up the tape. Jeremy's voice started. "You know he'll destroy everything, everyone, you care about. They will pay the price for your lesson."

That was when Tim jumped up and pushed Jeremy against the wall. When he whispered in Tim's ear, Abby provided the voice over. "Your final lesson will be dealt in the place of loss and beginning."

"Loss and beginning? Where the hell is that?" Tony huffed frustrated as he ran his hands through his hair.

Abby turned to them. "I was hoping you knew." She chewed on her bottom lip.

They were all quiet as they tried to think over everything they knew.

Hal was the first to make the connection. "Pax! He's up at that damn warehouse at Pax River."

They all turned to him. "Think about it. It was the place where Talbot lost Tim, and where Tim began his new life as a McGee."

"Oh, shit Hal. I think you're right."

"I think so too, Mike." DiNozzo said as he picked up the phone. "Pam, I need to speak to the director."


	23. Chapter 23

Disclaimer: I do not own NCIS or its characters. I am not making any money from this story.

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><p>Gibbs hadn't realized he passed out until he woke-up again. He looked down at his left hand. Talbot hadn't bothered to bandage it. There was dried blood, torn and burned flesh, and Talbot's signature mark.<p>

Talbot came back into Gibbs' view. "That's why I always wait until someone's dead before I place my mark." He knelt down in front of Gibbs' again. "Lots of blood, couldn't have you bleed out." He reached into his pocket and pulled out a small, hand-held crafting wood burner. He laughed at Gibbs. "You held up pretty good until I started cauterizing."

Gibbs swallowed and tried to put some authority into his voice. "Why?"

"I told you, I need you alive ... for now."

Gibbs shook his head, trying to clear the cobwebs. "Why?"

"Because a live lesson is more powerful than a dead one."

The two men looked to where the sound of the voice had come.

In walked Timothy McGee, Sig Sauer drawn and focused on Talbot. "Hello father."

Talbot stood and smiled. "Son! It's been a long time." Instead of walking towards Tim, he circled around behind Gibbs, keeping close knowing that if Tim fired, it would hit Gibbs too, then grabbed a gun of his own.

"Tim! What the hell are you doing here?" Gibbs was furious and scared.

Talbot raised a hand to strike Gibbs. "Don't even think about it, father."

The smiled turned into a scowl. "Who do you think you're talking too! Huh!" He put the gun to Gibbs' temple. "I'm your father!"

Tim took a quick look over Gibbs and noticed his left hand. He gripped his gun tighter. "If you shoot him, you'll lose your leverage."

Talbot grinned wickedly. "Oh, but I don't have to shoot to kill." He shifted the angle of the gun. "If I shoot this way, then I can turn him into a vegetable, or ..." he slid the gun down to Gibbs' shoulder blade, "... I can shoot him here and he'd loose use of his arm, or ..." he shifted again, pointing to Gibbs' leg "... blow off his knee cap. Do you know trouble that would cause someone of his age? Now, get rid of your gun."

Talbot and McGee stared at each other, until Talbot cocked his gun.

"Alright! Alright!" Tim lowered his weapon.

"Tim! No!" He wanted to protest more, but Talbot snaked his arm around Gibbs throat and squeezed.

"That's enough out of you. Now, son, put your gun on the floor, kick it away, then come over to me."

"I want your word that you won't hurt Gibbs."

"Sure son, you have my word."

Now, it was McGee's turn to scowl. "No, I want a real promise."

Talbot laughed. He relaxed his arm around Gibbs neck, then bent down to talk, with his mouth next to Gibbs' left ear. "You see, I taught my boy that anyone can give their word ... after all, they're just words. Those were _**very **_tough lessons." He laughed again.

Gibbs was trying to focus on getting his breath back instead of what Talbot was saying, but that last statement had him wondering just what Tim had gone through as a child.

"I'll tell you what son, you do what I want and I'll consider doing what you want."

"That's not good enough."

"It's the best you're going to get." Talbot sneered. "You have three seconds ... two ..."

"Fine!" Tim tossed his weapon away, it clattered against the floor and disappeared into the darkness.

"Good, now come here ... son."

Tim took a deep breath and walked forward.

Talbot kept his arm around Gibbs throat, watching Tim come towards him. When he was standing in front of Gibbs, Talbot struck out with the same quickness he showed earlier, and pistol whipped Tim, hitting him in the temple.

As Tim flew backwards and to the side, Talbot finally released Gibbs and went after him. He picked up the still dazed McGee by his collar. "You ungrateful brat! I raised you! I taught you! I showed you the way of the world! And what do you do! You turn your back on me! ME!" He struck Tim again.

"I will teach you the lesson of a lifetime!" He release McGee and let him fall to the floor. He then turned, took aim, and shot Gibbs.

"NOOOO!" Tim tackled Talbot at the knees, taking him down. That began the fight for survival.

XXXX

The shot hit Gibbs in his right shoulder, knocking him and the chair over. He shook his head, trying to clear the haze of pain. He wasn't sure how long he was lying there, when he heard another shot ... and Tim cry out in pain.

_He's hurt! I have to help him! I have to help my son!_ With the strength only a father knows, Gibbs got himself to his knees and threw himself down again, trying to get the wooden chair to break. After three tries, the chair finally gave. As Gibbs was sliding out of his ropes, he heard another shot go off.

He shook off the rest of his ropes and his fatigue. He grabbed one of the arms of the chair and yanked it free, creating a weapon for himself. He forced his legs to move, and worked his way over to the sounds of the struggle.

XXXX

Talbot won the fight for the gun then stood, looming over Tim. He fired a shot, striking Tim in the leg. "YOU SON OF A BITCH! I GAVE YOU EVERYTHING! EVERYTHING! AND THIS IS HOW YOU REPAY ME!" He fired again, this time striking Tim in the abdomen. "I THOUGHT YOU WERE SPECIAL! BUT YOU ARE JUST LIKE THE REST OF THEM! UNTHANKFUL, WHINNY, GOOD-FOR-NOTHING! YOU WILL BE SORRY YOU REJECTED ME!"

Before Talbot could fire again, a piece of wood came out of the darkness, striking his hand like a baseball bat, knocking the gun across the room. Fuming, Talbot full of murderous intent, turned to face Gibbs.

Ignoring his own pain, Gibbs followed through with his swing and then turned the stick around and adjusted his grip, changing it from a bat to a spike. Pulling his arm back as much as he could and with all of his strength, he shoved the wood straight through Talbot's left eye until he hit the back of Talbot's skull - he was dead before he hit the ground.

Gibbs collapsed to his knees, exhausted, then crawled over to Tim. He didn't know where to start first, there was blood everywhere. He put one hand on each wound and pushed, trying to stop the blood loss.

Tim's eyes fluttered open. "You're okay. Good."

"I'm fine Tim, and you will be too."

"It's okay, it's time." McGee closed his eyes.

"Time for what?" He didn't get a response, so he pressed harder on the injuries, getting a groan of pain. "Time for what Tim?"

He didn't open his eyes when he responded to Gibbs. "To be with my family ... both of them."

"No Tim!"

"I ... should have died ... long time ... ago ... borrowed time ... out ..."

Gibbs placed a bloody hand on Tim's face and pressed hard on the abdomen wound. "You open your eyes, now Tim." He pressed hard again. "Now Tim!"

He eyes opened slightly.

"You need to listen to me. You are NOT on borrowed time. Any parent would give anything to make sure their kid had more time to live ... and I don't think your parents would be any different ... either set of them. And ... and you still have a family here that needs you! Do you hear me?"

"Boss ..."

"NO! I won't accept anything else. You hear me!" Gibbs was desperate, his vision was starting to fade from his own injuries. He knew he needed to get Tim to fight for his life before he lost consciousness himself.

Again, he didn't get a response. He wanted to yell at Tim, force him to respond, but he couldn't. He tried to focus on putting pressure on Tim's wounds, but the world was fading. Just as his strength left him and he collapsed on top of Tim, he could have sworn he heard his name being called. He never found out for sure because darkness claimed them both.


	24. Chapter 24

Wow, I love the fact that I've been able to keep you guys anticipating what's coming next. I really, really thought about posting another chapter last night, but we are reaching the conclusion, so I don't want to cut it short. However, we're not done yet ... so enjoy.

Disclaimer: I am just having a little fun & do not own any part of NCIS

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><p>Gibbs sat on his couch, deep in thought, staring at a picture of his wife and daughter on the mantle above his fireplace.<p>

His healing was going slow. His left hand was progressing, a couple of the tendons had been cut. They were repaired but the physical therapy was hard. Gibbs was just glad that it wasn't his gun hand that had been damaged. His right shoulder was in better shape. The shot had been a through-and-through, and luckily had missed anything vital. Just a couple more days in a sling then he could start rehab for that as well.

A knock on the door brought him out of his reverie. Gibbs took a deep breath, then stood. He didn't know why he was so nervous about this meeting, hell, he was the one who asked for it. Another knock got him moving.

After fumbling with the doorknob, he opened the door slowly, but then just stood there.

"Well, you gonna invite me in or do I have to stand out here the whole time?"

Gibbs opened the door wider, then gestured to his guest to come in.

The man walked in and looked around. "This place looks the same, I don't think anything's changed." He turned to face Gibbs. "I don't know if that is a good thing or a bad thing, Leroy."

Gibbs smiled. "Hello to you too, Dad."

Jackson Gibbs looked over his son. "You must be having a hard time taking care of yourself if you've called me."

Gibbs sighed. "Dad, I ..." He just didn't know how to start this conversation.

Jackson, seeing the conflict on his son's face, walked over and placed a hand on his arm. "Son? You alright?"

"There's something I want you to see." He walked into the living room and sat back down on his couch.

"Leroy, you're starting to worry me."

"Please, just sit down."

"Please?"

"Dad ..."

"Alright." Jackson sat next to his son and just waited until Gibbs was ready.

Gibbs didn't have words, so he just pushed play on the remote for the borrowed VCR that DiNozzo set-up for him.

"Who is that little boy? What happened to him?"

"Just watch."

Jackson watched with the same rapt attention that Gibbs had, as his daughter-in-law came in and won over a terrified little boy. When the screen when dark, Jackson turned to his son. "What ever happened to that little boy?"

Gibbs swallowed, trying to keep his emotions under control. "He became one of my agents, Timothy McGee and ..."

"And, what?"

"Dad ... he ..." Gibbs couldn't keep it all in and let a tear fall before wiping it away quickly.

Jackson, never seeing his son _**ever **_shed a tear became even more concerned. He squeezed the arm he was holding. "Son, it's okay. Take your time and tell me."

For the first time in many years, Gibbs opened up to his father. He told him everything, from the moment Tim found out about the death of the McGees to the fight in the warehouse. He knew much of it was confidential, but he didn't care, not this time. He wanted his Dad to understand where he was coming from and why this was hitting him so hard. When he finish, he closed his eyes and sank further into the couch.

Jackson released his hold on Gibbs, then sat there, digesting everything he had been told. He reached over, grabbed the remote, rewound and replayed the footage. "Leroy ..."

"I want him to have a family again. I know we haven't been close, hell, part of that is my fault, but if you think we could put that all aside, if you think ..."

"I do."

Gibbs sat up and looked his Dad straight in the eyes. "Really?"

"Listen son, I know we have a lot to fix between us, but this ... this is bigger than any of that. I see how much he meant to Shannon ... and I can see how much he means to you. We can come together for this, we Gibbs can do anything we put our mind to." Jackson smiled. "I won't mind being a grandfather again. So, where is our boy?"

Gibbs took a deep breath and let it out slowly. "California. He's wrapping up the McGees' estate and burying them and his sister."

"You didn't go with him?"

"Wanted to." Gibbs looked down at the floor. "But he said we both needed space to think about everything. I know he thinks he's to blame for what happened. Dad, he ... he couldn't even look at me before he left." His shoulders slumped in defeat.

"You didn't let him go alone?"

"No, no. Of course not. One of his teammates went with him, Ziva."

Jackson raised an eyebrow. "Match making?"

Gibbs huffed a small chuckle. "No. It's just out of all of us, I think he would be most comfortable with Ziva. Abby or Tony would be too much over the top."

Jackson looked at him confused.

Gibbs laughed a little easier. "I'll have to introduce you to everyone."

"So you all are already family?"

Gibbs smiled. "In our own messed-up way, yes. But I know Tim, with the guilt he's carrying around about me, about the McGees, hell, even his biological parent, plus who knows what else from Talbot, he'll try to pull back and deal with it all on his own. Because he'll think he's being a burden, or interfering with the job, or some other bullshit. He needs grounding right now, and I think we can give that to him."

Before Jackson could say more, Gibbs' front door opened. "Hey, Boss! We're here."

Gibbs frown and got up to met Tony. "You're early."

"No, I'm not" He looked at his watch. "Oh, I guess I am. Sorry, Boss."

"He makes you call him Boss?" Jackson followed right behind Gibbs.

"Well ... uh ..."

Gibbs rolled his eyes. "DiNozzo, this is my father, Jackson Gibbs."

Tony reached out and shook the elder Gibbs' hand. "Wow, didn't know Gibbs had a Dad."

"Well, where'd you think he came from ... outer space?"

While Tony was making a fish impression, a motley crew came in behind him.

"Seems like it sometimes." Fornell snarked.

Gibbs shook his head and made the introductions of Fornell, Franks and Strasser.

"So, your all here to help get my grandson's room together?"

Everyone froze at that, except for Gibbs, who smiled.

"Boss? Is there something you need to tell us?"

"Tim, DiNozzo. He's talking about Tim."

"Oh." Tony thought about for a moment, then shrugged. "Then I guess he's right."

Gibbs thought Tony would have been the jealous one, but he saw the emotion flash over Mike's face instead. He couldn't blame Mike. He'd been there from the beginning with Tim, but Tim always seemed to pick someone else. If Gibbs had been in Mike's position, he'd probably would've been jealous too.

Gibbs chose not to bring attention to Franks. Instead he guided them into the house and upstairs. He was converting what used to be a guest room, that had changed into a storage room, back into a bedroom. All of the items currently in the room needed moved to a new home; then a new coat of paint and carpet; finally moving and setting-up all of Tim's new belongings. Usually, Gibbs would be able to do the work himself, but with two bum arms, all he could was supervise.

Jackson did his share of supervising too. He had a gleam in is eyes and lightness to his voice that Gibbs hadn't heard since he was a kid.

Several hours later Ducky, Jimmy and Abby joined the renovation party. They were all introduced to Jackson, who quickly realized the truth of Gibbs words about Abby and Tony being too much. He smiled easily at their antics, but was glad they were here instead of with his newly found grandson.

While everyone was having fun getting the room together, from the corner of his eye, Gibbs saw Franks leave the room. He waited a few minutes, then followed. He found Franks in the kitchen, getting coffee. "Pour me one."

Mike looked at him sideways. He just nodded and poured another cup. He carried both over to the table and sat, Gibbs followed. Neither man said anything, drinking their coffee in silence.

Mike let out a long breath. "I would like to bring Leyla and Amira to met Tim."

"That would be nice ... after everything calms down." Gibbs didn't want to exclude Mike, but his protectiveness overrode everything.

"Probie ..."

"I think Tim would make a great Uncle to Amira."

"Would've been a great big brother."

"Mike ..."

"No Probie, I don't wanna go there."

The two fell silent again, drinking their coffee.

Franks once again broke the silence. "You've been given a great gift Jethro. Don't mess it up."

"I won't Mike."

They sat there in silence, drinking their coffee, but now, with an understanding reached between them, the tension was gone ... mostly.

Over the next several days, everyone gathered at Gibbs' house so that everything would be ready for Tim ... and so that Jackson could get to know Gibbs' team... his family.


	25. Chapter 25

Here we are, the last chapter! Enjoy!

Disclaimer: I do not own nor making money from NCIS.

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><p>Because of his injuries, it was weeks before Tim could finally lay his family to rest. He knew Gibbs wanted to come with him, but his guilt and shame made it impossible for him to be any where around his Boss.<p>

He even had trouble at the attorney's office. He felt like a fraud, representing himself as Dan and Cindy's son, when he was the reason they were dead. Ziva, who had been by his side the entire time, reminded him that from the time the McGees first met Tim, they wanted nothing more than to be his parents.

It helped him get through the meeting, but did nothing to sooth the guilt weighing on him. He didn't want to be doing any of this, felt he didn't have right, but he knew he needed to honor his the people who had taken care of him. So, he pushed on, quietly and reserved, not showing any of the grief he felt.

He was able to keep it up until the night after his family was buried. Back in the hotel, he felt completely overcome and cried into his pillow in an effort to be quiet. However, Ziva, being Ziva, heard him in her connected room. She picked the lock of the inner door and went to his side.

She spoke softly, telling him about the loss she felt when she lost her sister, then her mother. Even her brother, Ari, missing the boy of her youth who was destroyed by the man he had become. How, even though she had a biological father, she often felt alone and isolated. That was, until Gibbs let her come on the team. First Tim accepted her, soon to be followed by Tony and Abby. She told him that she finally knew what it was like to be part of a family and thanked him for that.

It was what Tim needed. He finally allowed himself to properly grieve, Ziva staying right with him. Once the storm had passed, he shared stories of his childhood with the McGees. His favorite memory was of going to the Olympic Games and seeing a man fly over them with his jet-pack ... making Ziva laugh.

It didn't take away the guilt, but it relieved some of the heaviness he had been carrying. He fell asleep in the middle of a story, making Ziva smile. Instead of going back to her room, she stayed with Tim, keeping a protective watch over him.

XXXX

The next morning, they were heading back to D.C.

Tim picked at his breakfast, barely eating anything. Ziva knew he was nervous about facing Gibbs again, but didn't understand why. She knew Gibbs' didn't hold him responsible for what happened. In fact, it seemed no one but Tim was doing that. She tried to talk to him about it, but he kept diverting the conversation. She decided she wouldn't push the issue, but would be there for her friend if he wanted to open-up.

Thanks to the private jet Director Vance, with the permission of Sec-Nav, let them use - they were on their way back home in no time.

Tim quickly fell back to sleep once they were in the air. Ziva frowned, she knew depression was settling on Tim, his constant sleeping and lack of eating being the first signs. She was worried and resolved to speak to Gibbs about it ... soon. She curled up in her seat and tried to focus on reading the book she had brought along. However, her mind kept wandering. She sighed, closed the book, and just watched her friend sleep.

XXXX

Ziva woke Tim when the pilot let her know they would be landing shortly. He woke with a start and it took him a few moments to recognize where he was.

"I am sorry I startled you. I wanted you to know that we will be landing soon. It will be nice to back, no?"

"Yeah ... sure, Ziva."

She kept her face neutral, but she was very worried.

Once they disembarked from the jet, they went to the waiting company car, with Tony driving.

He offered a big smile to his two returning partners. "Probie! Ninja-girl! Welcome back!" He sauntered over and picked up Tim's luggage. "Did you keep Ziva in line out there? I know what she can be like traveling." He wagged his eyebrows at them.

Tim shrugged and entered the back of car without saying anything. Ziva and Tony exchanged looks. He stepped close to Ziva and spoke softly to her. "Don't worry, Gibbs has a plan."

She looked up at him, searching his face and eyes. Satisfied with what she found, she nodded and sat in the front passenger seat.

On the drive, Tony talked non-stop. After fifteen minutes, Ziva thought she was going to kill him. She turned to get McGee's opinion, and found him asleep again.

She put a hand on Tony's arm. He stopped talking and looked in the rear-view mirror at Tim. He then looked over to Ziva, then gave a big smile. "Gibbs ... plan." He winked and went back to his torrent of talking.

Ziva tried to take comfort in the fact that Tony wasn't worried. She knew she would worry less if she was in on what ever this plan was. She turned back around in her seat, closed her eyes for a moment to center herself. When she opened them again, she started breaking into Tony's commentary. Within minutes, the two were 'bickering', nothing felt more normal to Ziva and she took comfort in it.

XXXX

Tim awoke as soon as the car came to a stand still. He lolled his head to look out the window at Gibbs' house. "You know, I could've just gone to a hotel."

Tony, keeping his tone light, responded. "Are you kidding me? I've had more than enough head-slaps since you've been out of town, not looking for more ... at least not right now." He flashed the famous DiNozzo smile.

Tim sighed and slowly got out of the car while Tony got his luggage out of the truck. "We could have taken Ziva home first. It's longer this way."

Tony came around the car and placed a hand on Tim's shoulder. "I'm under orders, Probie. Don't worry."

Tim lowered his eyes to the ground. "Yeah, okay."

Tony was bursting to tell his friend what was going on, but that too was an order from Gibbs. So instead, he winked at Ziva and took Tim's stuff into Gibbs' house.

Ziva started to follow.

"Stay here Ziva, I'll only be a moment." Tony called over his should in a jovial tone, but shot Ziva a look that told her that was an order. She nodded her understanding and sat back in the car.

Tony lead the way, with Tim following solemnly behind. He burst through the door, "Hey Boss, we're here!" He walked into the living room and placed the luggage by the couch.

Tim came in right behind Tony, then flopped down on the couch and closed his eyes.

Gibbs had been watching from the kitchen door way. Tony walked over and in a low voice said, "He hasn't eaten much and has been sleeping for most of the day."

Gibbs nodded to his senior agent, then nudged his head towards the door, indicating it was time for him to leave.

In the same low voice. "Take care of him Boss." Then DiNozzo turned and left, knowing his partner was in the best hands possible.

Gibbs watched Tony leave, then turned his attention back to Tim. He was sitting on the couch, head resting on the back, eyes closed in feigned sleep.

"Dinner's on the table."

Tim didn't move a muscle.

Gibbs went to open his mouth when a hand was placed on his arm. He turned to look at the owner. He nodded at the silent message he was being given and stayed quiet.

Tim hoped Gibbs got the message and would just leave him alone. He felt so uncomfortable around his Boss right now and just didn't know what to say to him. When he felt the someone sit on the sofa, he braced himself for the lecture.

Instead a hand was placed on his leg. "I know it's hard, but you need to keep moving forward."

Tim opened his eyes to look at the older man he didn't recognize. He shot up and looked apprehensively over to Gibbs.

"Tim, I'd like you to met my fa ... dad, Jackson Gibbs." He had found out that Talbot made Tim call him nothing but 'father' and Talbot would only call him 'son', not even giving Tim an actual name. So, he was trying to keep away from anything that could remind Tim of that monster. Dad was a safe term, since it was something Talbot never used, but Dan McGee had.

Tim looked from Gibbs to Jackson, back to Gibbs. "Are you okay Boss?"

Gibbs smiled at his concern. "Yeah, Tim, I'm fine. I just ..."

"Leroy thought it would be a good idea for us to get to know each other. Since we all have lost loved ones." Jackson smiled, not wanting to revel the real reason his son had called him in.

"Leroy?"

Gibbs actually chuckled at that. "He's the only one who calls me that ... so don't go getting any ideas."

"Why not, that's your name, isn't it?"

"Do me a favor Tim, stick with Boss." Gibbs looked over to his agent and smiled.

Tim was confused. He never knew Gibbs to be so agreeable, he wasn't sure what to make of it.

Jackson lifted his hand off of Tim's leg and grabbed his arm instead. "Come on, I'll explain how he got his name ... over dinner." He stood, bring Tim with him, not letting the young man refuse.

They walked past Gibbs and sat at the kitchen table. Gibbs stayed in the doorway and watched as his Dad went through the whole story. When he saw Tim give his trade-mark shy smile at the conclusion of the story, that's when he knew everything was going to work out just fine.

He turned back to his mantle to look at the picture of his girls again, proud to be able to finish something Shannon had started so long ago. This time, instead of the picture, he saw the two of them standing in the living. "I'm going to make you girls proud, just you watch."

Shannon and Kelly looked at each other, then out to Gibbs - giving him their best smiles.

"Leroy! You get your butt in here! You need to eat too, ya know!"

Gibbs turned and called over his shoulder, "I'll be right there!" When he turned back, the image of his wife and daughter were gone, but knew their presence would always be close.

When he joined his father and Tim at the table, Tim had already started eating and had a slight smirk on his face.

"Once me and the Misses got done arguing about the first name, we started anew about the middle."

Gibbs gave a quick side glance to Tim, who looked back at him and, for the first time in weeks, met Gibbs eyes. His smile was a little stronger, even though there was still the lingering hurt.

Gibbs nodded and smile back. "Dad! I don't think Tim really wants to hear ..."

"Nonsense! Besides, how often do I get to tell my stories. Bet he's sick of hearing yours!"

A comfortable bantering fell between father and son, with Tim quietly, but happily, listening.

As dinner finished and Jackson served coffee, and the talking continued ... eventually Tim even joined in.

Gibbs sat enjoying the time. After losing his own, his teams had always been his family, especially this one. Now, Tim would truly become his son. Maybe not in name, but in heart ... and that was all that really mattered.

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><p>Thank you to everyone who came along for the ride! Your support and reviews have meant so much to me. To everyone who reads this in completion, I still welcome your reviews!<p>

See you in the next story!


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